Baku/25/08/17/Turan: The New York based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) criticized the detention of Mehman Aliyev, head of the independent news agency Turan, and called on Azerbaijani authorities to immediately release him.
"Azerbaijan must stop this politically motivated persecution of Mehman Aliyev and the Turan news agency," said CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova. "Authorities have systematically jailed journalists and squeezed out independent media outlets by abusing the criminal code," she said.
In turn, the Co-chairman of the US Helsinki Commission, Senator Ben Cardin expressed concern over Aliyev"s detention. "I am extremely worried. Azerbaijanis deserve freedom of the press and thought," he wrote in his microblog.
The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Dieser, also wrote on his Twitter that he is very concerned about reports of Mehman Aliyev"s detention. --06B--
Politics
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On 23 November at the COP29 climate conference in Baku, eco-activists from different countries held a protest action against the failure of countries to agree on climate finance.
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On the eve of the closing of the COP29 climate conference in Baku, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has drawn attention to the criminal cases of journalists detained in Azerbaijan.
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Negotiations at the 29th session of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Baku have been extended until November 24, a source in the UNFCCC Secretariat told the Turan news agency. According to the source, participants aim to finalize and sign the concluding documents by that date.
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According to the Turkish newspaper Sabah, officials from the Istanbul Prosecutor's Office's Anti-Smuggling Unit have detained an Azerbaijani citizen with a large shipment of gold. The detention took place near the Vadi İstanbul shopping center in the Sarıyer district, where a taxi was stopped. During the search, 70 kg of gold was found. The Azerbaijani citizen in the vehicle claimed ownership of the cargo and also stated that he was a diplomat. The investigation by the prosecutor's office is ongoing, reports Sabah newspaper. The media outlet does not disclose the name of the "diplomat," only his initials – M.G.Ş. The Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs has declined to comment on the situation.
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