Health of convicted Azerbaijani journalist worsens after hunger strike
Director of the Azerbaijani online publication Abzas Media Ulvi Hasanli, who has been on hunger strike since July 20, complained about his deteriorating health and cruel treatment in prison. In five days, he lost 6 kg of weight, but he is not provided with medical care.
Despite these circumstances, Hasanli was placed in a punishment cell.
Recall that in June, a Baku court sentenced Hasanli to 9 years in prison. The same terms were given to the editor-in-chief of the publication Sevinj Vagifgizi, investigative journalist Hafiz Babali, and economist Farid Mehralizade. Other journalists were sentenced to slightly shorter prison terms: Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova - 8 years each, Mohammed Kekalov - 7 years.
They were initially accused of smuggling foreign currency. The charges were then toughened: illegal entrepreneurship on a large scale, legalization of criminal proceeds by an organized group, falsification of documents, group tax evasion. The journalists deny guilt and claim that they are being persecuted for investigating facts of corruption in the highest echelons of power in Azerbaijan.
