Day: May 7, 2026

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the International Press Institute (IPI) have condemned the decision of Azerbaijan’s Supreme Court, which upheld long prison sentences against six employees of AbzasMedia and a correspondent of Radio Liberty.
RSF stated that it considers the rejection of the journalists’ cassation appeals and the upholding of their long prison sentences to be arbitrary and unjust.
“Unacceptable detention conditions, arbitrary arrests, and a manifestly unfair trial – the journalists of Abzas Media are being punished by the Azerbaijani regime for doing their jobs. The prevailing impunity for the violence these journalists have suffered in detention and the systematic denial of justice must not be tolerated by the international community. These journalists, like all the unjustly detained news professionals in the country, must be immediately released,” said Anne Bocandé, RSF’s Editorial Director.
The statement notes that at least 25 media representatives are currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan, and 24 of them are facing charges related almost exclusively to currency smuggling.
The International Press Institute (IPI) emphasized that the Supreme Court’s latest decision is part of a broader plan in the country. According to the organization, this step serves the long-term goal of “the Aliyev regime destroying press freedom and independent journalism in the country.”
“With these latest rulings, all domestic legal remedies for the journalists from Abzas Media and Radio Free Europe (RFE/LR) have now been exhausted. IPI will continue to advocate for their release and supports all efforts to secure justice, including taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR),” the IPI statement said.
Both organizations are demanding that the Azerbaijani government immediately release all imprisoned journalists.
A day earlier, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) also issued a similar statement condemning the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the long prison sentences.
Since November 2023, Abzas Media director Ulvi Hasanli, editor-in-chief Sevinj Vagifgizi, project coordinator Mahammad Kekalov, investigative journalist Hafiz Babali, journalists Elnara Gasimova and Nargiz Absalamova, as well as Radio Liberty staff member and economist Farid Mehralizada have been arrested.
They have been charged with smuggling and other serious financial crimes. The journalists reject the accusations, stating that the criminal prosecution is related to their professional activities. Local and international human rights organizations have also called for their release. The preliminary and trial investigations together lasted nearly two years.
On June 20, 2025, at the Baku Serious Crimes Court, under Judge Rasim Sadikhov, Ulvi Hasanli, Sevinj Vagifgizi, Hafiz Babali, and Farid Mehralizada were sentenced to 9 years in prison; Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova to 8 years; and Mahammad Kekalov to 7 years and 6 months.
On September 9, the Court of Appeal upheld the verdict.
On April 3, 2026, the Supreme Court rejected the cassation appeal of the defendants, leaving the previous ruling unchanged.
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The case of imprisoned journalist and economist of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Farid Mahralizada, was raised by U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance during his meeting with President Ilham Aliyev in Baku in February of this year.
This was reported by Steve Capus, the president of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, in a post on the social network “X.”
Capus wrote that Mehralizada’s arrest and the sentence handed down to him are unfounded. He called on the Azerbaijani authorities to reconsider the decision.
“Our colleague should not have been charged charged, let alone convicted. Locked away for nearly 2 years, unable to spend the day of his daughter’s birth or any day since with her. Farid’s case was raised by by U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance in Baku. The leadership of Azerbaijan has the power to humanely correct this injustice,” Steve Capus wrote in his post.
U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance made an official visit to Azerbaijan on February 10. He held first a limited meeting, then a broader one with President Ilham Aliyev.
At the end of the visit, the parties signed the “Charter on Strategic Partnership between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the United States of America.”
Official statements did not provide information on whether issues related to human rights, political prisoners, or the arrest of journalists were discussed during the meetings.
Farid Mehralizada was arrested in May 2024 as part of the “AbzasMedia case.”
Prior to him, AbzasMedia’s director Ulvi Hasanli, editor-in-chief Sevinj Vagifgizi, project coordinator Mahammad Kekalov, investigative journalist Hafiz Babali, as well as journalists Elnara Gasimova and Nargiz Absalamova had also been detained in connection with the case.
In June 2025, by a decision of the Baku Court of Grave Crimes, the organization’s director Ulvi Hasanli, editor-in-chief Sevinj Vagifgizi, investigative journalist Hafiz Babali, and economist Farid Mehralizada were sentenced to 9 years in prison; reporters Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova were sentenced to 8 years, and deputy director Mahammad Kekalov to 7 years and 6 months.
They were found guilty of smuggling and other crimes.
The journalists deny the charges, stating that their arrests are politically motivated due to their investigations into corruption.
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