A friend of Bakhtiyar Hajiyev was released from the police after many hours of interrogation

Baku/06.06.23//Turan: A friend of the public activist Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, Rail Abbasov, was released after many hours of interrogation at the main police department of the city of Baku on June 22.30.

“At about 8 o'clock in the morning, a search was carried out in our house. They also searched my car and Bakhtiyar's car, which was also parked in our yard. Receipts for assistance that we collected during the Second Karabakh War for the military and other documents were seized from the house and cars. My computer, phones of my family members and my personal documents were also taken from the house. Then I was taken to the Main Police Department of the city of Baku and as a witness was interrogated from 14.00 to 22.30 in a certain criminal case in which Bakhtiyar is a suspect. I answered about 40 questions of the investigation,” Abbasov said.

Recall that on June 6, searches were carried out at Hajiyev's apartment, in the houses of his parents in Ganja and his brother Goygol. Gadzhiev's documents and computer, hard drives and flash cards with personal and family photos of the Gadzhievs, including a photo of the activist with Hillary Clinton, were seized.

**Bakhtiyar Hajiyev was arrested on December 9 last year on charges of hooliganism and contempt of court. On the same day, the Khatai district court sentenced him to 1 month and 20 days of imprisonment.

On 9 January 2023, the Court of Appeal refused to release him and he resumed his hunger strike. On 21 January, the court extended his detention for one month, and on 23 February for two more months.

On February 28, the 51st day of his hunger strike, Hajiyev ended his hunger strike.

Representatives of the US State Department, the US Senate, the European Union, the Council of Europe and several international NGOs repeatedly demanded that Hajiyev be released from prison. -03B06-