"We fully support the human right to exercise the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the Azerbaijani Constitution and the government’s international commitments and obligations", a State Department spokesperson noted on Friday in response to TURAN's request to comment on the latest sentencing of jailed opposition party leader and government's vocal critic in Azerbaijan.
Ali Aliyev, chairman of the Citizens and Development Party, was convicted yesterday for the third time on defamation charges.
"We urge authorities to create an environment conducive to the exercise of human rights by allowing members of political parties, independent media, NGOs, religious organizations and defense lawyers to operate freely", a State Department spokesperson said.
Human rights groups and local activists view Aliyev's case as another sign of how defamation laws are being used against political opponents and civil society activists in the country. Aliyev himself called the court decision politically motivated.
Alex Raufoglu
Washington D.C.
Politics
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On 4 February, the Baku Court of Appeal released former Russian judge Yelena Khakhaleva, who was arrested in Azerbaijan at the request of the Russian Prosecutor's Office.
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Lawyer Zibeyda Sadygova met with reporter Natig Javadly, arrested in the 'Meydan TV' case, on 4 February in Baku pre-trial detention centre-1.
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U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday welcomed his first international guest - Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House at a critical juncture for the Middle East ceasefire. In a surprise move, the pair unveiled a surprise plan with Trump suggesting that the U.S. could take control of the Gaza Strip, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports from the White House.
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Journalist Shamsad Aga was detained by police during the late hours, his brother Shahid Agayev reported to Voice of America.
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