Azerbaijani journalist Aziz Orujov detained for 3 months, office and home searched
Stockholm, November 29, 2023—Azerbaijani authorities should release Aziz Orujov, director of the popular television channel Kanal 13, from detention on charges of illegal construction, and cease their legal harassment of independent media, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. The Sabail District Court in Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, on Tuesday ordered that Orujov be held in…
Azerbaijani anti-corruption journalists Ulvi Hasanli and Sevinj Vagifgizi detained for 4 months
Stockholm, November 21, 2023—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Azerbaijani authorities to release Abzas Media director Ulvi Hasanli and chief editor Sevinj Vagifgizi and to disclose the whereabouts of Hasanli’s assistant, Mahammad Kekalov, who has been missing since Monday. A district court in the capital of Baku on Tuesday ordered that Hasanli and Vagifgizi remain…
Azerbaijan police arrest Abzas Media director Ulvi Hasanli, raid outlet
Stockholm, November 20, 2023 – Azerbaijani authorities should release Abzas Media director Ulvi Hasanli and allow the country’s beleaguered independent media to work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. Police in the capital, Baku, detained Hasanli outside his apartment early Monday morning on suspicion of unlawfully bringing money into the country, Hasanli’s lawyer,…
Azerbaijani journalist Vugar Mammadov sentenced to 30 days in jail over interview
Stockholm, July 28, 2023 – Azerbaijani authorities should release journalist Vugar Mammadov and stop retaliating against journalists for reporting on issues in the public interest, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Monday, July 24, the Narimanov District Court in the capital, Baku, sentenced Mammadov, chief editor of independent news outlet Hurriyyet, to 30…
European Court of Human Rights awards compensation to Azerbaijani journalist Emin Huseynov over 2015 revocation of citizenship
Stockholm, July 25, 2023—In response to a July 13 judgment by the European Court of Human Rights stating that Azerbaijani authorities violated Emin Huseynov’s human rights when they deprived the journalist and press freedom advocate of his citizenship in 2015, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “We welcome the European Court of…
Azerbaijan police detain, beat journalists covering environmental protest
Stockholm, June 30, 2023—Azerbaijan authorities must ensure journalists can cover protests without obstruction and should investigate reports of police violence against members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. Since June 22, Azerbaijani police have detained, beaten, threatened, or otherwise obstructed the work of at least six journalists reporting on environmental protests…
Azerbaijani photojournalist Vali Shukurzade sentenced to 30 days in jail
Stockholm, February 15, 2023 – Azerbaijani authorities should release photojournalist Vali Shukurzade and ensure that members of the press do not face trumped-up charges in retaliation for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On the evening of February 4, in the Yasamal district of Baku, the capital, police detained Shukurzade, a freelance…
Forensic tools open new front for using phone data to prosecute journalists
On April 13, police in Russia’s Khakassiya republic arrested Mikhail Afanasyev and seized his digital devices. Afanasyev, chief editor of the online magazine Novy Fokus, was detained based on an article about riot police in southern Siberia refusing to serve in Ukraine. He faces a possible 10-year prison sentence for spreading “false” information. It’s not surprising for…
Azerbaijani journalist Avaz Zeynalli, lawyer Elchin Sadygov remanded for 4 months on bribery charges
New York, September 12, 2022 – Azerbaijani authorities should release journalist Avaz Zeynalli and lawyer Elchin Sadygov and drop the charges against them, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On Saturday, September 10, uniformed officers who identified themselves as part of the prosecutor general’s office arrested Zeynalli, owner and chief editor of the independent…
Azerbaijan journalist Aytan Mammadova threatened at knifepoint
New York, May 11, 2022 – Azerbaijan authorities must swiftly and thoroughly investigate threats and a recent attack against journalist Aytan Mammadova and ensure her safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. Around midnight on May 8, an unidentified man grabbed Mammadova in the elevator of her apartment building in the Binagadi district in…