Azerbaijani authorities detain at least 6 journalists on currency smuggling charges
New York, December 6, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the Azerbaijani authorities’ detention of at least six journalists and media workers in the capital Baku on Friday. At around noon, independent journalist Ramin Jabrayilzade (also known as Ramin Deko) was detained at the Baku airport upon arrival from neighboring Georgia, where he was covering…
Hackers delete social media content of independent Azerbaijani news outlet Meydan TV
On June 18, 2020, anonymous hackers deleted nearly all of the content from the Azeri-language Facebook page of Meydan TV, an independent Germany-based news outlet that covers Azerbaijan, according to Matthew Kasper, the outlet’s project head, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview. The hackers deleted all of Meydan TV’s Facebook posts since 2018,…
Freedom of speech is guaranteed Aliyev says as Azerbaijan blocks news websites
President Ilham Aliyev claims that in Azerbaijan the internet is free and press freedom is guaranteed. But ahead of the April 11 snap elections, authorities have systematically silenced critical voices online through amending laws and blocking news websites, and hackers have attacked independent news outlets.
Azerbaijan government seeks order to permanently block news websites
New York, April 28, 2017–The Azerbaijani government should immediately stop trying to permanently block access to five independent media outlets’ websites and should instead lift a decree that has rendered them currently inaccessible, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. A district court in the capital Baku yesterday began hearing a government lawsuit that seeks…
Azerbaijani authorities open criminal investigation into Meydan TV
New York, April 22, 2016–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Azerbaijani authorities to end the harassment of Meydan TV after a criminal investigation was opened into the online independent outlet and a travel ban was imposed on some of its contributors.
In Azerbaijan, Meydan TV reporters harassed, jailed
New York, September 18, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the harassment of independent news outlet Meydan TV by Azerbaijani authorities. This week Shirin Abbasov, a reporter for the outlet, was imprisoned, authorities searched the home of another of its reporters, and questioned two journalists who work for the outlet.
Press freedom at low as Azerbaijan takes Council of Europe chairmanship
On Wednesday, Azerbaijan will assume chairmanship of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers. The chairmanship process is automatic; the position is rotated every six months among all of the council’s members, in alphabetical order. But Azerbaijan’s chairmanship has proven more problematic than most, as it comes at a time when the country’s fulfillment of…