Afgan Sadigov banned from leaving Azerbaijan

On the night of May 26, opposition journalist Afgan Sadigov posted a video message from Baku airport, claiming that authorities had prevented him from leaving Azerbaijan.

He explained that he had been informed of the travel ban imposed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Prosecutor General's Office. Sadigov also noted that the Prosecutor General's Office had previously dropped the criminal case against him.

As a reminder, Afgan Sadigov was deported from Georgia to Azerbaijan on April 5. The grounds for this were charges of insulting a government official, as well as several administrative violations related to his participation in protests.

The European Court of Human Rights had previously ruled that Sadigov's extradition was inadmissible. His deportation occurred during the visit of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to Tbilisi. However, Georgia's ruling party denied any connection between the two events, stating that the decision was made in accordance with national law.

Upon arrival in Baku, Afgan Sadigov was briefly detained by police but later released. He was informed that he was wanted, but after being informed that the criminal case had been closed, he was released with a warning of possible re-arrest.

Afgan Sadigov moved to Georgia with his family in December 2023 for medical treatment, but decided to stay due to persecution in his home country. The journalist also mentioned threats he received in Georgia from individuals associated with Azerbaijan. In May 2020, he was sentenced in Azerbaijan to seven years in prison on extortion charges but was subsequently pardoned. Human rights activists have deemed the case against him fabricated.

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