Matthew Miller
'Deeply Troubled': U.S. Reacts To Arrest Of Three Journalists In Azerbaijan, Urges Respect For Freedom Of Expression
The United States on Tuesday, once again, urged the Azerbaijani government to respect rights and freedoms in the country, as the authorities in Baku reportedly detained additional journalists associated with the independent news outlet AbzasMedia, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.
"We are deeply troubled by the reported arrest of three journalists: Ulvi Hasanli, as well as the allegations of Hasanli’s physical abuse in custody; Sevinj Vagifgizi; and Mahammad Kekalov, who is also a civic activist," State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told TURAN.
"We urge the Azerbaijani government to respect the rights and freedoms of all, including freedom of expression," Miller added.
As TURAN reported earlier, a district court in Baku on Tuesday ordered that Hasanli and Vagifgizi remain in custody for four months on charges of conspiring to bring money into the country 'unlawfully'. If found guilty, they face up to eight years in prison under Article 206.3.2 of Azerbaijan’s criminal code.
According to the New York-based global press freedom watchdog Committee to Protect Journalists, as of Tuesday evening, Kekalov’s whereabouts remained unknown. Individuals in plainclothes who did not identify themselves took Kekalov from his home in Baku on Monday along with his laptop and cell phone, a source familiar with the case told CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal.
Abzas Media is one of a handful of independent outlets that remain in Azerbaijan following a series of raids, arrests, and criminal investigations against independent media and press freedom groups since 2014.
The latest detention of journalists investigating political corruption, follows the arrest of economist Gubad Ibadoghlu, who has been in jail since July on trumped up charges in retaliation for exposing high-level corruption in Azerbaijan.
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- Politics
- 22 November 2023 09:49
Politics
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Rashadat Orujev was appointed head of the newly created Khankendi city Prosecutor's Office. The corresponding order was signed by Prosecutor General Kamran Aliyev. According to the press service of the Prosecutor General's Office, Orujev joined the prosecutor's office in 2012, worked in the prosecutor's offices of Mingachevir, Tovuz and Baku.
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Azerbaijan is an important strategic partner of Latvia, Chairman of the Seimas – Parliament of this Baltic country Daiga Mierina said at a press conference in Baku today. During her visit to Azerbaijan, she traveled to Karabakh, visited Shusha and Fuzuli. She stressed that the visits of representatives of the international community to the territories liberated from occupation play an important role in bringing Azerbaijani realities to the world community. Mierina announced the readiness of Latvian companies to participate in construction and restoration work in Shusha.
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Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov expressed condolences to the Chief of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, Mohammad Bagheri. "I am deeply saddened by the news of the death of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ibrahim Raisi, and the delegation accompanying him as a result of the helicopter crash of the Iranian Armed Forces. We share the grief of the families and friends of all those who died during this tragic accident. May God rest their souls," the message says.
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"Amnesty International" has sent a letter to the President of Azerbaijan calling for the immediate release of Gubad Ibadoglu, an economist and political activist.
İran Prezidentinin də həlak olduğu helikopter qəzasına görə məsuliyyəti kim daşıyır? – Sədrəddin Soltan Çətin sualda
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- Social,
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