U.S. Says 'Monitoring With Concern' Bahruz Samadov's Arrest in Azerbaijan

The United States said on Monday that it was 'monitoring with concern' the recent arrest of Azerbaijani young scholar, journalist and peace activist Bahruz Samadov, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

"We are monitoring the arrest of Bahruz Samadov with concern. We are deeply troubled by Azerbaijan’s continued crackdown on journalists, civil society, and members of the political opposition,"  a State Department spokesperson said in response to TURAN's inquiry.

"Those exercising their human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of expression, should not be targeted for doing so," a State Department spokesperson added.

Samadov, 28, a doctoral student at Charles University in Prague, was detained last week in Azerbaijan.

A Baku court on August 23 sent him to pretrial detention for four months on a high treason charge, which he rejects. “I only wanted peace, I have not betrayed my country,” Samadov was quoted as stating in court last week.

If convicted, he could face life in prison.