Taleh Bagirzadeh Reports on Torture against Him

Consideration of complaints of torture and violation of rights of the theologian Taleh Bagirzadeh was held in the Nasimi District Court of Baku, chaired by Judge Babek Huseynov, on February 5.

Bagirzadeh and more than 10 of his supporters were detained on November 26 during a special operation in the village of Nardaran. He is accused of attempting to overthrow the constitutional order and the commission of many other serious crimes.

According to his lawyer Javad Javadov, the complaint filed in the judicial review raises the question of violation of Bagirzadeh's right to defense and in particular lack of access to it for a long time after the arrest, as the lawyer he trusts was not allowed to contact him. The complaint also reports his being kept in the General Directorate for Combating Organized Crime (GDCOC) at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the use of torture there.

Consideration of the complaint filed in late December was postponed several times and was held on 5 February. Bagirzadeh spoke in court and said that he had been tortured in the GDCOC.

The court's decision will be announced on 9 February.

According to the lawyer, in January Bagirzadeh, although transferred from GDCOC to Prison No 1 of the Penitentiary Service, was still not allowed to call home, to be visited by his relatives and to receive parcels with food.

We did not manage to obtain the relevant comments from the law enforcement. -06B--