On 20 June, the Baku Court of Serious Crimes, in Azerbaijan, sentenced seven media workers affiliated with the independent investigative outlet Abzas Media – including director Ulvi Hasanli, editor-in-chief Sevinc Vagifgizi, investigative journalist Hafiz Babaly, reporters Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasymova, translator Muhammad Kekalov, and Radio Free Europe correspondent Farid Mehralizade – to prison terms ranging from seven and a half to nine years. The charges included “currency smuggling,” “money laundering,” “tax evasion” and forgery of documents. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) denounces this rigged trial based on trumped-up charges, and calls on the European Union to step up pressure on the regime of President Ilham Aliyev.
The prosecution and imprisonment of these seven journalists are widely believed to be in retaliation for their investigations into corruption among President Ilham Aliyev’s inner circle. These include reports on post-war reconstruction in Nagorno-Karabakh and illicit financial networks tied to state-linked companies. According to Amnesty International, “during the hearings, the defence highlighted numerous procedural irregularities, pressure on the defendants and witnesses, and a lack of credible evidence. Witnesses have withdrawn or denied previous statements, and defendants have reported ill-treatment in custody”.
On 20 June, Farid Mehralizade was sentenced to nine years in prison. Ulvi Hasanli, Sevinj Vagifgizi and Hafiz Babali were all handed nine-year sentences. Reporters Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasymova were sentenced to eight years in prison, and Muhammad Kekalov, to 7 1/2 years.
This is the latest episode in a long series of repressive waves. In March 2024, Azerbaijani authorities targeted another news outlet, Toplum TV, with raids and arrests on similar charges. In December 2024, Azerbaijani authorities arrested six more journalists on smuggling charges, including five of those working for the independent Meydan TV news outlet. Earlier this year, authorities withdrew press credentials from Voice of America and Bloomberg and shut down the BBC‘s office in Azerbaijan.
“The Azerbaijani judicial system has become an instrument of repression in the pay of the regime, designed to muzzle independent journalists,” said EFJ General Secretary Ricardo Gutiérrez. “Charging alleged financial crimes is an easy tactic to silence journalists who expose the corruption of the ruling class. The heavy penalties imposed are designed to create a reflex of self-censorship among journalists”.
“What is most shocking is the complicity of the international community, starting with the European Union, which is careful not to mention the regime’s repressive drift, ” added EFJ President Maja Sever. “We are literally outraged by the recent statements made in Baku by Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. Her complacency is pure complicity”.
According to the Council of Europe Platform for the Protection of Journalism, 36 journalists are currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. The country has the highest number of imprisoned media workers held on politically motivated charges since it joined the Council of Europe in 2001.
Source: EFJ
