Protest in Georgia in support of Afghan Sadigov

Today, in Tbilisi, a protest was held in front of the Government House of Georgia in support of Afghan Sadigov, the leader of the Azerbaijani “Azel TV” website who has been arrested in Georgia. His wife, Sevinc Sadigova, reported that local independent journalists and activists participated in the protest, Turan reported. The participants called on the Georgian authorities to halt the extradition of Sadigov to Azerbaijan.

"If the Georgian authorities extradite Afghan, it means they will be carrying out the orders of the authoritarian regime of Azerbaijan," said Sadigova. She also noted that the protesters demanded the release of all 300 political prisoners in Azerbaijan.

Afghan Sadigov, along with his family, moved to Georgia on December 24 of last year. He was detained by Georgian police on August 3 while attempting to fly with his family to Istanbul. On August 4, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced him to three months in detention pending extradition to Azerbaijan.

On May 10, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Internal Affairs charged Afghan Sadigov under Articles 188.2.2 and 182.2.4 of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code ("extortion by threats, seizure of someone else's property, repeated threats of publishing compromising information").