The guards subjected Ulvi Hasanli to physical pressure

Today, the director of the online publication Abzas Media  Ulvi Hasanli was subjected to violence when he was taken out of court back to the pre-trial detention center, his relatives told Turan. According to them, Hasanli's hands were handcuffed from behind. At the same time, the guards lifted his arms up and bent his head down. When Hasanli protested, force was used against him. Hasanli's relatives said this was the second case of such treatment. The prison service could not be reached for comment.

Rufat Safarov, Director of the human rights organization “Line of Protection,” regarded such treatment of the arrested person as a violation of the rights guaranteed by the Constitution of Azerbaijan and the European Convention of Human Rights. He pointed out that the trials of journalists are conducted in an environment of strict "security" measures, people who came to support them, as well as reporters covering the cases of colleagues, are not allowed close to court buildings. The human rights activist called this an indicator of the government's intolerance of free journalism.

* Since November 20, 2023, six journalists and media workers of the “Abzas Media” publication have been arrested on charges of "currency smuggling". They denied the charges, linking the criminal case to corruption investigations that were published in “Abzas Media.”

International media protection organizations have called on the Azerbaijani authorities to immediately release the detained journalists and stop pressure on the media.