News

According to latest measurements carried out by OONI, access to a number of key news sites remains blocked in Azerbaijan.  In its latest report that covers the period from January through April, OONI concludes, there is “a strong signal that specific censorship techniques are adopted to block access to these specific media websites.” One noteworthy […]

[Update] According to OC Media, Gurbanov was relocated to a prison, which the lawyer says, is in breach of the law. Speaking to OC Media, lawyer Fariz Namazli said, the relocation was illegal as the defendant is awaiting the result of an appeal case. “This [the decision to relocate Gurbanov] was explained to me by […]

Vafa Nagi, an activist who recently exposed systemic abuse of young girls in one region of Azerbaijan has herself become a target of harassment as a result.  Writing about the harassment on her Facebook account, Nagi explained that ever since she shared the story of a 14-year-old  girl, a resident of a small village subject […]

This month, a series of articles published by The Guardian newspaper revealed how leaders across the world, used Facebook loopholes to harass their critics at home. And how despite having information about these violations, the platform lets these cases sit sometimes for months on end if not more, instead choosing to deal with more high […]

Almost a month after AIW published this story about how some 500 inauthentic Facebook pages targeted Berlin-based independent online news platform Meydan TV, little has changed. While all of the pages that targeted Meydan TV remain active, someone else has taken notice.  On April 13, The Guardian published this story explaining how Facebook allowed state-backed […]

This is part two in a series of detailed reports and analyses on existing legal amendments and new legislation affecting freedom of expression, media, and online rights in Azerbaijan and their compliance with international standards for freedom of expression.   Background On September 17, 2020, Zahid Oruc, member of the parliament and the head of the […]

According to online news platform monitoring human rights developments in Azerbaijan, Gozetci, a journalist with the state news agency Azertac, Aygun Aliyeva was dismissed from her job after Facebook posts. Aliyeva’s attempt to take her case to court proved futile. The court ruled in favor of the news agency four days ago.  Aliyeva told an […]

According to Minority Magazine reporting, a new movement calling itself “Pure Blood” is mobilizing via the Telegram channel to target members of the LTBTQI community in Azerbaijan. The magazine, sharing screenshots from the channel called on the relevant government institutions in Azerbaijan to investigate.  “Hurray, they should be burned,” wrote one user in the chat. […]

A page on Facebook took it upon itself to target yet another woman in Azerbaijan. This time, the target is the daughter of politician Jamil Hasanli, Gunel Hasanli. Not only that, but the page also is advertising a telegram channel, where they claim an intimate video of Ms. Hasanli is available.  Another page, previously engaged […]

[Update June 15] On June 12, French police arrested two men suspected of being sent to France to kill Mirzali. According to RSF, the two men – one Azerbaijani and the second Moldovan of Turkish origin – “were driving Polish-registered cars, and both had Mirzali’s address.”  Mirzali tweeted about the arrest too: Two men, on different […]