More than 10 journalists and oppositionists have been detained in Azerbaijan

In Azerbaijan, nine journalists associated with the independent Internet TV channel Toplum TV, as well as at least three political activists, were detained on Wednesday. This happened after the search of the Toplum editorial office and the homes of the detainees. The BBC and Radio Svoboda informed their relatives about the searches and detentions. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan does not comment.

The search of Toplum TV editorial office in Baku began in the morning. Relatives of the journalists said that they were taken away by the police, and there is no connection with them. The editor-in-chief of Toplum, Khadija Ismail, said that she did not know what could have been the reason for the persecution, and that there were no legal grounds for initiating proceedings against Toplum. “We were not involved in any crime and did not commit any illegal actions,” she said. “This is just another step in the wave of repression in the country.”

RFE/RL’s Azerbaijan service clarifies that after a search in his home, an employee of Toplum Farid Ismaililov was detained. During the search, according to relatives, more than three thousand euros were seized, and Ismailylov declared that these money did not belong to him. The second search took place in the apartment of civil activist Akif Gurbanov, he was also detained. The police did not allow the lawyers of both Gurbanov and Ismaililov to be present during the searches.

Toplum TV is an independent Internet television. Among other things, it publishes investigations into human rights violations and corruption in Azerbaijan.

The three detained activists – Akif Gurbanov, Araz Aliyev and Ruslan Izzetly – belong to the public movement “Platforma III Respubliki”. It advocates limiting the power of the president and transitioning Azerbaijan to a parliamentary form of government. The traffic office was also searched.