The US State Department called on Georgian authorities to release exiled Azerbaijani journalist Afgan Sadigov. On August 3, he was detained in Tbilisi and placed in a deportation center. If extradited to Azerbaijan, the opposition figure faces another prison term.

“We are deeply concerned about reports of the detention of Afgan Sadigov in Tbilisi. We call on Georgian authorities to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and immediately release him. His arrest comes amid an ongoing crackdown on civil society in Azerbaijan, and we again call on the government of Azerbaijan to immediately release all individuals who have been unjustly detained and to refrain from harassing civil society,” the State Department said in a statement.

Afgan Sadigov has been living in Georgia since December 2023. In May 2020, he was sentenced in Azerbaijan to seven years on extortion charges. Human rights activists called the criminal case a fabrication. Sadygov was pardoned in May 2023, but continued to face threats from the authorities and left his homeland.