aiw_admin – Azerbaijan Internet Watch

Meta, TikTok, and other social media platforms to face mandatory registration and local presence requirements in Azerbaijan

Posted on July 6, 2026July 6, 2026 by aiw_admin

Parts of this entry are based on reporting published by Qəzetçi. Below is a translated, edited, and expanded version of the original.

Azerbaijan’s parliament (Milli Majlis) is debating a package of amendments to the Law on Information, Informatization and Protection of Information and the Law on the Protection of Children from Harmful Information that would, for the first time, formally require global social media platforms to register in the country, open local representative offices, and enforce a higher minimum age for users.

Under the draft, platforms that fail to comply face financial sanctions of 100,000 to 300,000 AZN, as well as the possibility of being blocked in the country. According to Farid Pardashunas, a board member of the Press Council, platforms will be given 12 months to comply once the law enters into force, and companies such as Meta, Google, and TikTok would be expected to open offices in Baku and set up Azerbaijani-language support services — a model he compared to neighboring Turkey.

Age restrictions raised from 13 to 16

The amendments, under discussion since early June, would prohibit the creation of social media accounts for children under 16, above the minimum age of 13 that most platforms currently apply. Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, X, Snapchat, and other networks would reportedly fall within the law’s scope. Existing accounts would be reviewed after the law takes effect, and accounts whose holders’ ages cannot be verified would be deleted. Users aged 16–18 would be subject to parental consent and oversight, special safety measures, content and advertising restrictions, and geolocation limits.

Age verification, according to Havva Huseynli, head of the cooperation and communication sector at the Electronic Security Service, would rely on cross-checking bank card data (via temporary blocking of funds), email, and mobile phone numbers. Huseynli said personal data would be used solely for age verification and would be deleted immediately if a match is not confirmed. The proposed changes were also discussed at a June 10 meeting between the Presidential Administration and NGO representatives.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Science and Education has already moved ahead with its own restrictions. Deputy Minister Firudin Gurbanov said on June 8 that access to TikTok has been blocked in schools, that internet filtering is applied to schoolchildren’s access more broadly, and that videos on more than 200 “dangerous topics” have been restricted.

Tax registration as a parallel track

Separately, starting September 2026, foreign digital service providers operating in Azerbaijan’s e-commerce market with an annual turnover exceeding 10,000 USD will be required to register electronically with the tax authorities. The State Tax Service announced on May 10 that ten foreign digital service providers — including Apple, Adobe, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Epic Games, and Chess.com — have already registered. Notably, Meta’s platforms (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), which provide e-commerce services in Azerbaijan, are absent from the published list.

Experts warn of vague criteria, privacy risks, and potential for abuse

Internet technology expert Osman Gunduz noted that Azerbaijan has 17-year-olds building AI businesses, coding, launching startups, and competing in international olympiads and hackathons — often with digital skills exceeding those of their parents. Gunduz also warned that the proposed verification methods (mobile number, email, bank card) can be circumvented — a child can simply use a parent’s phone or card — while leaving verification to the platforms themselves creates the risk of transferring identity data of millions of users to foreign companies.

Lawyer Yalchin Imanov told Qəzetçi that protecting minors online is a normal legislative practice, pointing to Australia’s law, in force since December of last year, as the first of its kind. But he stressed that such changes must go through public consultation first — something absent in Azerbaijan, where restrictions on information sources and social networks surface either only during parliamentary debates or after adoption. “That is the dangerous side of the matter,” he said. Imanov also noted the ambiguity of what the “200+ dangerous topics” restricted in schools actually cover, at a time when access to pornographic and other content remains freely available in the country. Given the authorities’ track record of intolerance toward freedom of expression and alternative sources of information, he said, the possibility that minors’ access to such sources will be restricted cannot be ruled out.

According to available figures, Azerbaijan has 7.6 million social media users — 1.65 million on Facebook, 4.73 million on Instagram, and over 6 million on TikTok, with WhatsApp the most active messaging app. The state’s interest in platforms is not limited to regulation: as Qazqazinfo reported back in 2024, the State Oil Fund (SOFAZ) has invested 179 million USD in Meta.

Background: previous attempts to monitor and control social media platforms

The current draft is the most concrete step yet in a longer trajectory of state efforts to bring social media under regulatory control, which Azerbaijan Internet Watch has documented over the years:

The 2017 amendments to the Law on Information. First adopted in 1998 as a technical regulation, the Law on Information, Informatization and Protection of Information was converted into a content-regulation instrument through restrictive amendments introduced on March 10, 2017 — the same law now being amended to cover platform registration. Together with the Code of Administrative Offenses (Articles 388 and 388-1), it has served as the primary legal basis for blocking websites and prosecuting online speech, see AIW’s coverage of the legal framework.
Prosecutor General’s Office as a de facto content regulator. AIW’s May 2022 legal analysis, “Who regulates content online in Azerbaijan”, documented the pattern of the Prosecutor’s Office issuing warnings and administrative charges against social media users, bloggers, and website editors for “disseminating prohibited information” — a practice that intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic, when one MP even proposed a special unit to monitor social media platforms and hold users spreading “rumors” accountable.
Press Council proposals and the local-representation agenda. As early as 2020–2022, the Press Council proposed establishing a commission with the Prosecutor’s Office to regulate the media and floated regulating social media platforms. Media law expert Khalid Aghaliyev assessed at the time that these proposals were linked to the state’s intention to have platforms open representative offices in Azerbaijan and then use those offices to consolidate control over the platforms — precisely the mechanism now written into the draft amendments.
The 2022 Media Law. Adopted by parliament in December 2021 and signed in February 2022 despite widespread domestic and international criticism, the Law on Media extended restrictive registration and licensing requirements to online media and journalists. AIW’s legal opinion “New Media Law: implications for online media/journalism in Azerbaijan” detailed its adverse implications, and the mandatory media registry it created has since been used to deny registration to independent outlets.
The March 2026 presidential decree. The current amendments follow directly from a decree signed by President Ilham Aliyev on March 1, 2026, focused on children’s online safety, which introduced age restrictions on registering for social platforms and instructed the Cabinet of Ministers to draft implementing legislation within three months — a timeline consistent with the amendments now before parliament.
Expanding regulatory ambitions. The move also comes amid a broader push to regulate the digital sphere, including the government’s recent initiative to regulate AI-generated content and the creation of a new Digital Development Council in February 2026.

Viewed against this background, the framing of the current amendments around child safety mirrors earlier legislative moves in which protective language accompanied provisions that expanded the state’s leverage over online platforms and speech. The combination of mandatory local representation, steep fines, and blocking powers replicates the model adopted in Turkey and Russia — a model that in both countries has been used to pressure platforms into removing content and handing over user data.

Activist Ahmad Mammadli Sentenced to 6 Years

Posted on March 16, 2026March 17, 2026 by aiw_admin

On March 16, the Baku Serious Crimes Court held a hearing in the case of public activist and founder of Yoldash Media, Ahmad Mammadli.

The state prosecutor had requested a 9-year prison sentence.

Following deliberations, the court sentenced Mammadli to 6 years in prison.

Mammadli was detained on May 6, 2025, and formally remanded in custody on May 8. He is accused of inflicting serious knife injuries to an individual identified as Vugar Dunyamaliyev.

He was charged under:

Article 126.2.4 (intentional infliction of serious bodily harm)
Article 221.3 (hooliganism involving the use of a weapon)

Mammadli denies the charges, stating that his arrest is linked to his journalistic activities.

Azerbaijan Moves to Regulate AI-Generated Content

Posted on March 14, 2026March 23, 2026 by aiw_admin

Azerbaijan’s parliament is debating two draft laws that would establish the country’s first legal framework for AI-generated content. One bill would criminalise the creation of AI-generated sexually explicit content featuring real individuals without their consent, carrying a prison sentence of up to seven years. A second bill would require all AI-generated content to be clearly labelled as such, with fines of ₼80–₼150 (roughly $50–$90) for unlabelled material.

Parliamentary committees reviewed both bills in March. Human rights lawyer Yalchin Imanov welcomed the initiative as a legal first for Azerbaijan, but cautioned that its practical application remains unclear, noting that the country has a history of applying laws selectively to protect figures in power. ICT expert Osman Gunduz acknowledged the global urgency of regulating deepfakes and AI-generated sexual abuse material, but raised implementation concerns — particularly around how authenticity will be verified, what level of disclosure will be required, and whether vague enforcement mechanisms might create new legal risks for journalists and news organisations. He warned that without clear enforcement frameworks, bureaucratic obstacles could undermine the laws’ effectiveness and stifle a media and creative sector that will increasingly rely on AI tools to remain competitive.

Opposition Figure Given 25 Days Administrative Detention

Posted on March 10, 2026March 17, 2026 by aiw_admin

Jeyhun Novruzov, head of the Sabail district branch of the Popular Front Party (AXCP), has been sentenced to 25 days of administrative detention.

According to the party, he was found guilty under:

Article 510 (petty hooliganism)
Article 535.1 (failure to obey police orders)

The AXCP states that Novruzov had criticized traffic police on Facebook four days prior, accusing them of unlawfully fining pedestrians. Novruzov was previously sentenced to 10 days in detention in December 2024 under similar charges, which he denied.

Novruzov is not the first activist to receive penalties for online criticism. Recent months have seen continued cases in Azerbaijan where individuals—particularly opposition activists—have been detained after posting criticism of authorities on Facebook. According to recent reporting by independent Meydan TV, numerous individuals who liked and commented on social media posts critical of the authorities have also faced penalties and charges.

Among them is Movsum Mammadov, who was sentenced to 30 days in prison after posting criticism of local authorities on social media; civic activist Konul Ahmadova, who was sentenced to 10 days in administrative detention; and Mushfig Abbasov, who was sentenced to 15 days in administrative detention.

Analysis of anonymized court decisions published on Azerbaijan’s electronic court portal shows that social media activity—particularly Facebook posts—is frequently referenced in administrative cases. Courts typically describe such activity using generalized phrases such as “sharing content on social networks” or “publishing information online,” while avoiding full quotation of the posts themselves. The content is legally framed as violating public order, often characterized as insulting, immoral, or disruptive. Evidence commonly includes screenshots and data extracted from mobile devices. Rather than prosecuting speech directly, courts tend to apply public-order provisions such as petty hooliganism, effectively translating online expression into administrative offenses.

Blogger Manaf Jalilzade Sentenced to 8 Years in Absentia

Posted on March 6, 2026 by aiw_admin

The story was originally published on Meydan TV. This is a translated and edited version.

The Baku Court for Serious Crimes has sentenced Azerbaijani blogger Manaf Jalilzade — who lives abroad — to 8 years in prison. The verdict was delivered in absentia.

Jalilzade, currently residing in Switzerland, was charged with “calls against the state” under two articles of the Criminal Code: incitement to mass disorder and calls against the constitutional order. Prosecutors alleged he shared footage from a 2019 protest near the UN building in Geneva on YouTube, and between 2023 and 2025, published videos inciting violence against the government.

Switzerland’s Federal Ministry of Justice had previously rejected Azerbaijan’s extradition request, citing risks of torture and denial of a fair trial if he were returned. Jalilzade denies all charges, calling them baseless.

Broader Context

His case is part of a wider pattern. On December 26, 2025, a Baku court sentenced another group of diaspora bloggers in absentia: Gurban Mammadov and Tural Sadiqli each received 14 years, while five others received 9-year sentences. Most of the defendants reject the charges as politically motivated.

In recent years, Azerbaijan has opened criminal cases against numerous bloggers and activists living abroad, with charges typically including incitement to mass unrest, calls to armed uprising, terrorism, and fraud.

Azerbaijan Creates New Digital Development Council

Posted on February 27, 2026March 6, 2026 by aiw_admin

The original story was published by Meydan TV. This is a translated and edited version.

President Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree establishing the Digital Development Council, a new body tasked with overseeing digitalization, e-government, artificial intelligence, and innovation policy in Azerbaijan.

The Council is mandated to coordinate state digital policy, supervise related programs and projects, propose improvements to regulatory documents, and align the activities of government agencies. It will report to the President annually and will have the authority to bring in local and foreign experts and form working groups. The Ministry of Digital Development and Transport will serve as the Council’s secretariat.

First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva will chair the body. Its membership includes presidential aides, key economic ministers, the Central Bank governor, and the executive director of the State Oil Fund.

Background: The February 11 Meeting

The decree comes 16 days after a presidential advisory meeting on February 11 dedicated to a unified action plan called “Azerbaijan’s New Digital Architecture.” At that meeting, Aliyev laid out a sweeping vision and a list of competitive advantages he believes position Azerbaijan well for the digital era: its geography as a bridge between Asia and Europe, a stable investment climate that has attracted over $350 billion in foreign investment over 20 years, at least 2,000 megawatts of unused power generation capacity (a prerequisite for data centers), and strategic partnership agreements with the US, EU member states, and China.

Aliyev announced several concrete directives at the meeting: all government services are to be consolidated under the single “mygov” platform; each ministry is to designate a dedicated deputy minister for digitalization and cybersecurity; and a fiber-optic cable project linking Azerbaijan to the eastern Caspian shore is expected to be completed this year.

Digital Development Minister Rashad Nabiyev reported at the same meeting that the ICT sector grew 8.5% last year, internet speeds have risen from 12 to 90 Mbps nationally since the “Online Azerbaijan” project launched, and 270 state institutions now use the government cloud. He also flagged that IT exports remain stuck at around $100 million — well below potential — and set a target of scaling that figure to $1 billion through a combination of startup financing reform, attracting foreign tech firms, and expanding the innovation ecosystem.

Aliyev also noted that Azerbaijan suffered a “very organized and aggressive cyberattack” last year, underscoring the urgency of cybersecurity investment alongside the digitalization push.

Skepticism Remains

Despite the ambitious framing, some experts caution that Azerbaijan announced economic diversification goals roughly a decade ago and the country remains heavily dependent on oil and gas revenues. They are skeptical that targets around transitioning to an innovation-driven economy will materialize without deeper structural reforms — not just new institutions and action plans.

Azerbaijan Uses Vague ‘Immorality’ Law to Imprison Critics

Posted on February 23, 2026March 23, 2026 by aiw_admin

Azerbaijan is now actively imprisoning civic activists and government critics under new administrative legislation signed into law by President Ilham Aliyev on 26 January 2026. The amendments, approved by parliament on 15 January, classify ‘immoral activity on social media directed against society and national morality’ as petty hooliganism — a shift from criminal to administrative liability that allows authorities to detain individuals immediately, without a criminal conviction.

On 5 February, activist Movsum Mammadov from the Kurdamir district was sentenced to 30 days in administrative detention for Facebook posts documenting poor living conditions in his community and criticising local authorities’ inaction. Friends reported that his critical posts were deleted from his account shortly after his arrest, and he became unreachable.

Under the new framework, ‘disrespectful actions’ on social media carry fines ranging from ₼50 ($30) to ₼2,000 ($1,200) depending on the circumstances and whether it is a repeat offence, and administrative arrest of up to 30 days, or up to two months for repeat offences.

Human rights lawyers have condemned the legislation as deliberately vague. Yalchin Imanov told OC Media that the broad language violates the principle of legal certainty — a foundational principle of law requiring that rules be clear, unambiguous, and have predictable consequences. He characterised the law as enabling total state control and driving widespread self-censorship. Fariz Namazli added that, unlike the previous criminal framework — which required a guilty verdict and was thus harder to apply swiftly — administrative liability can be imposed immediately, giving the state a far more powerful and instant tool to silence dissent. He noted that the previous law linked petty hooliganism to a breach of public order; the new law replaces this with the undefined concept of ‘manifest contempt for society’.

Movsum was not the only social media user. Also in February, Zeinab Zeinalli, a 25-year-old content creator known online as ‘Koti’ with approximately 300,000 followers, was remanded in custody for eight days after being charged with publishing obscene statements and openly disrespecting society. The Prosecutor General’s Office confirmed the charges. Pro-government outlet Okhu.az reported that Zeinalli’s prior offence — a ₼600 ($350) fine for promoting illegal gambling on Instagram in November 2025 — was a factor in the court’s decision to detain rather than fine her. She admitted in court to having insulted users who criticised her online, expressed remorse, and pledged to change her behaviour.

However, the crackdown on TikTokers predates the new law. According to OC Media reporting, Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry had detained or summoned over 60 TikTok users in the first three months of 2024 alone for content deemed contrary to moral values, particularly during live broadcasts. At the time, the ministry’s spokesperson could not specify which articles of the administrative code the TikTokers were charged under, reflecting the legal ambiguity that preceded the January amendments.

Among those recently arrested for online content are also TikTokers Sardar Majnunov (Serdar Inanki) and Rena Jafarova (Renka), who were detained on 17 February for allegedly publishing content with ‘obscene expressions or gestures’. Majnunov was sentenced to 20 days in jail, while Jafarova was fined ₼750 ($440), with the court granting her leniency due to having an underage child. In early February, queer TikToker Salman Mammadov, who used his page Velizarofficial primarily to fundraise for sick people and children, was arrested and sentenced to 30 days of detention for ‘promoting immorality’.

Human rights lawyer Fariz Namazli told OC Media that the legislation remains deeply flawed: there are no precise criteria defining what constitutes offensive, immoral, or morality-violating expression, and courts have consistently failed to justify why specific posts are deemed contrary to national values.

Azerbaijani Journalists and Bloggers Under Threat Across Europe

Posted on February 18, 2026February 25, 2026 by aiw_admin

The story was originally published on Meydan TV. The version below is a translated and streamlined version of the original article.

The reach of Azerbaijan’s crackdown has increasingly extended beyond its borders. Journalists, bloggers, and activists living in exile across Europe have reported being surveilled, followed, and threatened — raising alarms about transnational repression.

On February 18, journalist Emin Huseynov published a video from Geneva, saying he had been followed by unknown individuals, just one day after publicly challenging President Aliyev at the Munich Security Conference.

On February 22, blogger Qabil Mammadov reported in a live YouTube broadcast from Europe that two men had been detained near the home of Alemdar Bunyadov, a member of the Muslim Unity Movement in exile, and that weapons had been found in their vehicle. During the same broadcast, blogger Mehman Huseynov — who had published a series of videos about the President’s daughter-in-law, Alyona Aliyeva — stated that he was being followed by a car.

Mehman Huseynov told Meydan TV that after publishing the videos, he began receiving death threats via social media and various online platforms. He said that members of his family in Baku — his father and brother — had been taken to the State Security Service and shown intimate videos of him, in an apparent attempt to intimidate and silence him. “We had already initiated formal procedures in the country where I live, citing a threat to my life,” he said. He also noted that MP Razi Nurullayev had called for his punishment from the floor of the Azerbaijani parliament in December, in connection with his posts about the police.

Journalist and former political prisoner Afgan Mukhtarli, who lives in Germany, told Meydan TV that the Azerbaijani authorities have a documented history of conducting operations against critics abroad. He cited the cases of Rauf Mirqadirov, who was abducted; of Bayram Mammadov, who died in mysterious circumstances in Turkey; of Vugar Rza, who died similarly in Belgium; of Huseyn Bakikhanov, who was openly murdered in Tbilisi; and of Vidadi Isgandarli, who was killed in France. Most recently, he noted, Mohammed Mirzali had survived armed and knife attacks in France. “Taking all this into account, the lives of Azerbaijani political emigrants, bloggers, and journalists are under real threat,” Mukhtarli said.

He named those he believes are currently being targeted: Ganimat Zahid, editor-in-chief of Azadliq newspaper; blogger Qabil Mammadov; journalist Emin Huseynov and his brother Mehman Huseynov; and religious figures Alemdar Bunyadov and Orkhan Agayev.

Mukhtarli urged those receiving threats to report them immediately to the law enforcement and intelligence services of their host countries, to avoid traveling alone, to stay in populated areas, to refrain from going out late at night, and to have their phones checked for spyware and location-tracking software. “Pay very serious attention to personal security,” he warned.

Mehman Huseynov confirmed that German criminal police had placed his home and the surrounding area under surveillance. “I have been assigned protection, and I am not leaving the house,” he said. He added that French, German, and Swiss criminal police are now collaborating to counter transnational crimes targeting Azerbaijani exiles. Ganimat Zahid, living in France, is also said to be under serious threat.

Supreme Court’s Privacy Ruling: Protecting Rights or Silencing Critics?

Posted on February 9, 2026February 25, 2026 by aiw_admin

February 9, 2026 – Azerbaijan’s Supreme Court has adopted a sweeping new resolution on the protection of personality rights, prohibiting the dissemination of information about a person’s private and family life — even when that information is accurate — without their consent.

Under the new rules, individuals may now seek civil remedies on the grounds of privacy violation regardless of whether the information in question is true or false. They can demand moral damages, deletion of the content, a retraction, or an injunction against further publication. Previously, civil action was only possible if the information published was demonstrably false.

The ruling has drawn considerable public attention, not least because it came shortly after blogger Mehman Huseynov published a series of videos about Alyona Aliyeva, the daughter-in-law of President Ilham Aliyev. Critics have questioned whether the timing is coincidental.

Jurist Fariz Namazli told Meydan TV that while the ruling addresses a genuine gap in existing law — there was previously no effective civil remedy for the unauthorized disclosure of true private information — it carries a serious risk of being weaponized against journalists and bloggers. He noted that recent social media posts touching on the private and family lives of public officials had increasingly prompted calls for legal accountability against those who published them.

Jamil Hasanli, chairman of the National Council, was more direct. He described the ruling as part of a broader strategy to curtail freedoms in Azerbaijan, arguing that its practical effect would fall almost exclusively on journalists, bloggers, and those who disseminate information about those in power. He pointed out the deep irony: Azerbaijani authorities themselves have for years gathered, used, and publicized the private information of activists and dissidents — including through the placement of covert surveillance devices in people’s homes — and have used that material as a tool of blackmail and intimidation through state-aligned media outlets. “It appears the authorities will use this law to target journalists and bloggers and restrict the freedom of those working in the information space,” Hasanli said.

Azerbaijan’s Constitution already guarantees privacy under Article 32, prohibiting the collection, storage, use or dissemination of personal information without a person’s consent. Critics argue the new ruling does not strengthen those protections in practice — it primarily creates a new legal instrument that can be turned against those who expose wrongdoing by the powerful.

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