in Azerbaijan a reserve colonel gets jail time

On October 6, the Baku Military court, sentenced reserve Colonel Elnur Mammadov to six months in prison. The court found Mammadov guilty of slander. Mammadov voiced criticism of the Ministry of Defense on social networks accusing it of cronyism and nepotism. The accusations were also leveled against the Ministry of Defense, Zakir Hasanov. 

According to local media reports, the Ministry of Defense earlier responded to Mammadov’s criticism by refuting the colonel’s claims. 

Mammadov said his arrest and sentence were directly linked to his social media commentary. 

In one of his recent videos, Mammadov said despite his attempts to speak with the Ministry about ongoing nepotism and cronyism within the Army no one listened. Instead, he was dismissed. In its response, the MoD said Mammadov was discharged because of his illness.