{"id":40047,"date":"2025-06-05T09:18:43","date_gmt":"2025-06-05T07:18:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/?p=40047"},"modified":"2025-06-05T09:25:39","modified_gmt":"2025-06-05T07:25:39","slug":"the-death-of-journalism-in-azerbaijan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/en\/the-death-of-journalism-in-azerbaijan\/","title":{"rendered":"The Death of Journalism in Azerbaijan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>A relentless crackdown in Azerbaijan has eradicated any semblance of independent media from the authoritarian country. As President Ilham Aliyev casts critical journalists as enemies of the state, they continue to try to hold power to account \u2013 from exile, or even from behind bars.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azerbaijani-journalists-banner.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azerbaijani-journalists-banner-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40048\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azerbaijani-journalists-banner-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azerbaijani-journalists-banner-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azerbaijani-journalists-banner-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azerbaijani-journalists-banner-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azerbaijani-journalists-banner.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">CREDIT: James O\u2019Brien\/OCCRP<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fatima Movlamli knew the police would come for her.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For months, the young Azerbaijani activist-turned-journalist had been documenting the plight of her colleagues as they were smeared by pro-government media, detained and hauled before the courts on \u201c<em>currency smuggling<\/em>\u201d charges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So Fatima prepared. The 24-year-old gave access to her Facebook account to friends abroad and recorded a one-minute <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/100063926296297\/videos\/935445032122276\">video<\/a> to be uploaded when the inevitable happened.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That video went live on February 28, 2025, the day she was arrested and became the 26th victim of an 18-month purge on Azerbaijan\u2019s independent media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fatima \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occrp.org\/en\/project\/the-pegasus-project\/fatima-movlamli-azerbaijani-activist\">who had been targeted before by authorities<\/a> after gaining fame as a teenage activist for her one-woman protests against Aliyev \u2014 looked straight at the camera and spoke to it defiantly.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>If I had known that the place I would go to is prison, that all independent journalists would be branded as smugglers, nothing I have done so far would change<\/em>,\u201d she said, promising to go back to reporting \u201cthe first day I get out.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Then, with a grin, she blew a kiss to the camera: \u201c<em>Take care of yourselves \u2014 we will see you in the next few years!<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"epyt-video-wrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\"  id=\"_ytid_17797\"  width=\"890\" height=\"500\"  data-origwidth=\"890\" data-origheight=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hWWzz2dGagc?enablejsapi=1&#038;autoplay=0&#038;cc_load_policy=0&#038;cc_lang_pref=&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;loop=0&#038;rel=1&#038;fs=1&#038;playsinline=0&#038;autohide=2&#038;theme=dark&#038;color=red&#038;controls=1&#038;disablekb=0&#038;\" class=\"__youtube_prefs__  epyt-is-override  no-lazyload\" title=\"YouTube player\"  allow=\"fullscreen; accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen data-no-lazy=\"1\" data-skipgform_ajax_framebjll=\"\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since then, two more journalists have been arrested, bringing the total to 28.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The unprecedented crackdown has effectively wiped out independent local journalism. Senior figures from two journalism schools are also among those detained.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Independent media in Azerbaijan and international rights groups have accused the government of detaining the journalists because of their work and creating a regulatory environment that makes it almost impossible for them to operate legally.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rachel Denber, deputy director of Human Rights Watch\u2019s Europe and Central Asia Division, described \u201c<em>the speed and comprehensiveness<\/em>\u201d of the current crackdown on journalists in Azerbaijan as the greatest since the country\u2019s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reporters Without Borders\u2019 latest <a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.org\/en\/country\/azerbaijan\">World Press Freedom Index<\/a>, released in May 2025, ranked Azerbaijan 167th out of 180 countries, citing the \u201c<em>new wave of fierce repression against the country\u2019s last remaining journalists.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pro-government media have echoed the message from authorities, airing allegations that journalists received illicit funding and regularly doxxing them by publishing private information about them, including phone messages, personal documents, and surveillance camera footage.&nbsp;<br>It\u2019s a tactic Fatima is already familiar with. In April 2019, intimate photos and videos of her were leaked online. She believed that they were taken from her phone when she was taken into custody, beaten, and forced to hand over her password. She had also been selected as a target of spyware, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occrp.org\/en\/project\/the-pegasus-project\/fatima-movlamli-azerbaijani-activist\">as reported by OCCRP at the time.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-arrest-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"581\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-arrest-1-1024x581.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40052\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-arrest-1-1024x581.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-arrest-1-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-arrest-1-768x436.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-arrest-1-1536x871.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-arrest-1.jpg 2003w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Fatima Movlamli being taken to court. Credit:Ulviyya Ali<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Prior to her arrest in February, Fatima had been freelancing for news outlets including Meydan TV \u2014 OCCRP\u2019s longtime Azerbaijani member center \u2014 helping to keep up coverage after its entire in-country staff were detained.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The online outlet\u2019s hard-hitting reporting on corruption and human rights in Azerbaijan had long made it a target of official harassment. Its website is blocked there, but it has a huge following on social media, including almost 1 million followers on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/meydantv\/\">Instagram<\/a> and 640,000 subscribers on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@MeydanTelevision\">YouTube<\/a>. (Azerbaijan has a population of 10 million). Though based abroad for years, it had managed to keep a team of journalists in Azerbaijan until a few months ago, including editor-in-chief Aynur Elgunash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meydan.tv\/az\/article\/h%c9%99bsxana-jurnalistin-m%c9%99hv-olacagi-yer-deyil\/\">recent letter she wrote from prison<\/a>, published by Meydan TV, Aynur described Azerbaijan as \u201c<em>gradually turning into a swamp, and this swamp is busy swallowing people.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The outlet\u2019s exiled management told OCCRP that it now has no employees working in the country for the first time in its 12-year-history.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Meydan TV is known for its highly engaged local audience; many of its stories have been prompted by reader tips. Now, while the outlet continues to publish from exile, it can no longer fully engage with readers to highlight the social issues they care about. Without reporters in the field, fact-checking has also become nearly impossible, made worse by stonewalling from state agencies, the outlet\u2019s management added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Weeks before she was detained, Fatima shared a smiling photo on Facebook of herself and fellow Meydan TV freelancer Nurlan Gahramanli, also known as Nurlan Libre, perched next to a monument dedicated to Mahammad Amin Rasulzade, a founding figure of Azerbaijani democracy in the early twentieth century.&nbsp;<br>\u201c<em>I\u2019m sharing this photo so that, if I get arrested, Nurlan can come and comment below,<\/em>\u201d Fatima\u2019s post read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-smiling-facebook.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"552\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-smiling-facebook-1024x552.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40054\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-smiling-facebook-1024x552.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-smiling-facebook-300x162.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-smiling-facebook-768x414.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-smiling-facebook-1536x828.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/fatima-smiling-facebook-2048x1104.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Meydan TV freelancer Nurlan Gahramanli (left), also detained, and Fatima Movlamli. Credit: Fatima Movlamli\/Facebook<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nurlan never had the chance. Just before Fatima\u2019s arrest, he was also detained on currency smuggling charges. He is now awaiting trial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"flourish-embed flourish-cards\" data-src=\"visualisation\/23157964\"><script src=\"https:\/\/public.flourish.studio\/resources\/embed.js\"><\/script><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/public.flourish.studio\/visualisation\/23157964\/thumbnail\" width=\"100%\" alt=\"cards visualization\" \/><\/noscript><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Detained Journalists Could Face Up To 12 Years In Prison<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Azerbaijan has long been one of the most challenging places in the world for independent media, and the government has previously jailed journalists on charges that rights advocates have described as bogus and politically motivated.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the muzzling of media has escalated rapidly since late 2023.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The purge kicked off in the run-up to presidential elections in February 2024, which Aliyev won with more than 92 percent of the vote.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As Aliyev eased into his fifth consecutive term, the targeting of journalists gathered pace.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Meydan TV, Toplum TV, Abzas Media, and Kanal 13 all now operate entirely from exile, with no staff working in Azerbaijan. The country\u2019s most influential independent news outlet, Turan News Agency, opted to shut down entirely in February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All of those outlets had run stories exposing corruption and rights abuses linked to the Aliyev regime.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-regime.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"519\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-regime-1024x519.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40057\" style=\"width:840px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-regime-1024x519.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-regime-300x152.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-regime-768x389.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-regime-1536x778.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-regime-2048x1038.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. Credit: president.az<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Other smaller independent media outlets have either stopped operating or have vastly reduced their output since their staff have been detained.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those still working for the publications from abroad choose to remain anonymous, fearing government retaliation against family members who remain in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of the 28 journalists and other media workers \u2014 such as administrative staff \u2014 arrested in the past 18 months, two have been convicted and jailed, 15 are currently on trial, and the rest are awaiting trial.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The charges against them often relate to allegations that they brought foreign currency into the country without declaring it, either in the form of hard cash or in grants from abroad. Such charges can lead to up to eight years in prison. Some of the detained face extra allegations including tax evasion and money laundering, which carry sentences of up to 12 years. All have denied the accusations against them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Conditions in Azerbaijan\u2019s jails are notoriously harsh. In July 2024, Abzas Media <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.is\/DB8L3#selection-291.0-706.0\">published<\/a> a letter from its director, Ulvi Hasanli, alleging \u201c<em>systematic torture<\/em>\u201d in the prison where he is being held while he stands trial in the country\u2019s capital, Baku. \u201cTorture continues every week, sometimes every day. Sometimes, one person and sometimes 10-15 people are beaten at once,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That same month, the Council of Europe\u2019s Committee for the Prevention of Torture criticized Azerbaijani authorities\u2019 \u201ccontinuing lack of action\u201d to end torture in its prison system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>Behind these charges, these journalists have been arrested for their journalistic work<\/em>,\u201d said Jeanne Cavalier, head of Reporters Without Borders\u2019 Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Azerbaijan\u2019s Presidential Administration did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\r\n<!-- Readmore -->\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-readmore\">\r\n\t<p><!-- wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<h2><b><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Foreign Media Also Targeted<\/span> <\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Among the journalists most recently detained was <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ulviyya Ali, a reporter with Voice of America\u2019s Azerbaijan bureau, who was <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.occrp.org\/en\/news\/azerbaijan-widens-media-crackdown-with-two-arrests\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">arrested in May<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in connection with currency smuggling. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In a letter written in anticipation of her arrest and shared with friends, she said: \u201cLike my fellow journalists, I have not committed any crime \u2014 I have neither brought what they call \u2018illegal funds\u2019 into the country, nor have I engaged in any wrongdoing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Accreditation for VoA\u2019s radio station had already <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/report.az\/xarici-siyaset\/amerikanin-sesi-nin-muxbir-akkreditasiyasi-legv-edilib\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">been revoked<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in February, according to p<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ro-government media outlet Report News Agency.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The BBC also <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/mediacentre\/statements\/bbc-news-azerbaijan-office\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">announced<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in February that its local office was closing after receiving \u201cverbal instructions\u201d from Azerbaijan\u2019s foreign ministry, and Bloomberg\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/report.az\/en\/foreign-politics\/bloomberg-s-accreditation-in-azerbaijan-revoked\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">accreditation has reportedly been withdrawn<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tensions have not just been confined to the West. Azerbaijani authorities <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/caliber.az\/en\/post\/sputnik-azerbaijan-baku-addresses-media-disparity\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">shut down<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the offices of Russian state-run media outlet Sputnik in February after President Aliyev <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2025\/01\/07\/asia\/azerbaijan-russia-passenger-jet-cover-up-accusation-intl-hnk\/index.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">accused<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Russia of accidentally downing an Azerbaijani passenger jet in December 2024.<\/span><\/p>\n\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n<!-- END: Readmore -->\r\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Aliyev, Trump and \u201cThe New World Order\u201d<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since 2014, Azerbaijan has tightened legal restrictions on foreign donors to local NGOs, leading to the introduction of new layers of bureaucracy and approval processes for grants from outside the country. Independent media outlets have suffered as a result, since many are set up as NGOs that receive grants from abroad.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Denber of Human Rights Watch said the legislation had made it \u201c<em>virtually impossible<\/em>\u201d for independent media outlets to operate legally. The legislation \u201c<em>leaves many opportunities for the authorities to arbitrarily withhold approval [for grants],<\/em>\u201d she said.<br>To Aliyev, such NGOs are part of a foreign-backed \u201cmoney smuggling\u201d network designed to undermine the state. At a recent international forum in Baku, Aliyev praised the success of Azerbaijan\u2019s crackdown on them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>So-called grants provided to so-called local NGOs \u2014 actually the branches of the opposition \u2014 now have to be registered, and it is very difficult to smuggle money here<\/em>,\u201d Aliyev told the audience, though he bemoaned how targeting such \u201c<em>smugglers<\/em>\u201d was perceived from the outside.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>When our law enforcement institutions bring these money smugglers to justice, they start accusing us of doing undemocratic things,<\/em>\u201d he said.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the Facebook video posted on her arrest, Fatima Movlamli pointed to the irony that journalists were being cast as smugglers by Aliyev, whose regime has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occrp.org\/en\/project\/know-your-host\">consistently been exposed by investigative reporters<\/a> as secretly siphoning money away from the state and into the pockets of his inner circle. He was, she said, \u201c<em>the smugglers\u2019 patron.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;At the Baku forum in April, which was titled \u201cFacing A New World Order\u201d and <a href=\"https:\/\/en.trend.az\/azerbaijan\/politics\/4027808.html\">brought<\/a> together representatives from more than 44 countries, Aliyev praised U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s freezing of aid to media that have called out repressive regimes like Aliyev\u2019s \u2014 and encouraged him to go further. .&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>What President Trump started to do is very promising, but I think he should not stop,<\/em>\u201d Aliyev told the audience.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>You should go deeper. Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, Amnesty International, Transparency International \u2014 all this infrastructure of his political enemies must be totally rendered dysfunctional,<\/em>\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-trump.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"519\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-trump-1024x519.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40059\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-trump-1024x519.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-trump-300x152.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-trump-768x389.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-trump-1536x778.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-trump-2048x1038.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">&nbsp;From left to right, Azerbaijani first lady Mehriban Aliyeva, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, President of the United States Donald Trump, United States\u2019 first lady Melania Trump.<br>CREDIT: president.az<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In his first 100 days in office, Trump dismantled the U.S. government&#8217;s main overseas aid agency, USAID \u2013 which he said was run by \u201cradical lunatics\u201d \u2013&nbsp; freezing <a href=\"https:\/\/rsf.org\/en\/usa-trump-s-foreign-aid-freeze-throws-journalism-around-world-chaos\">billions of dollars in global aid projects<\/a>, including an estimated $268 million to support independent media around the world. (OCCRP&#8217;s parent organization <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occrp.org\/en\/news\/us-judge-temporarily-halts-white-house-freeze-on-foreign-aid\">has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration<\/a> challenging the funding freeze.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump also forced the shutdown of international news services including Voice of America by withdrawing funding. VoA and other U.S.-funded media targeted by Trump, such as Radio Free Europe\/Radio Liberty, often provided the only alternatives to state-run media networks in undemocratic states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Surveillance And Smearing Used To Target Critical Journalists&nbsp;<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In parallel with Azerbaijan\u2019s crackdown on independent journalists, pro-government media have waged a campaign that reinforces allegations of illegal funding, sometimes publishing what they claim are private communications relating to the accused as part of their reporting.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Journalists targeted said that although some of the private communications and footage shown in the reports may have been fabricated, some appeared to be genuine, raising questions about how they were obtained.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reports from Baku TV, a prominent pro-government outlet, have included what it said were screenshots of text and audio messages between Meydan TV journalists on Signal and Slack.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another pro-government media outlet, <a href=\"https:\/\/qafqazinfo.az\/news\/detail\/toplum-tv-vesaitleri-nece-elde-edib-video-430572\">Qafqazinfo.az<\/a>, presented a montage of what it said were documents including grant project proposals and a freelance contract, mainly related to Toplum TV and one of its journalists.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Azeri-Press Agency (APA) published screenshots which it alleged showed private calls and messages between a journalist in Azerbaijan and Meydan TV journalists operating abroad, as well as personal information allegedly belonging to Meydan TV freelancer Nurlan Gahramanli. That report was soon followed by Nurlan\u2019s arrest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Meydan TV\u2019s management&nbsp; told OCCRP they believed the genuine material used in the pro-government takedowns of the outlet\u2019s journalists may have been obtained \u201c<em>under duress<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>Our journalists have been subjected to police brutality and threats in attempts to gain access to their electronic devices,<\/em>\u201d they alleged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An Abzas Media representative told OCCRP&nbsp; that local law enforcement had been providing material to pro-government media to \u201c<em>defame journalists<\/em>\u201d and \u201c<em>discredit them in the public eye<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Media freedom advocates also raised concerns about how the authorities and pro-government media would have obtained such private information.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">OCCRP <a href=\"https:\/\/www.occrp.org\/en\/project\/the-pegasus-project\">reported<\/a> in 2021 on the targeting of dozens of Azerbaijani journalists by Pegasus spyware. London-based NGO Media Defence, which is providing legal help to several detained Azerbaijani journalists, has since <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediadefence.org\/news\/pegasus-spyware-azerbaijan\/\">filed<\/a> applications to the European Court of Human Rights on behalf of a number of victims, alleging the state violated their privacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>Whether [the authorities] secured it through hacking their phones, through monitoring them, through surveilling them in other ways, I think in combination, all of this has a very serious impact on the way in which journalists conduct their activity,<\/em>\u201d said P\u00e1draig Hughes, legal director of Media Defence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Baku TV, APA, and Qafqaz did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Who Controls The Media in Azerbaijan?<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In its latest report, RSF said that \u201c<em>virtually the entire media sector is under official control<\/em>\u201d in Azerbaijan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>No independent television or radio is transmitted from within the country, and all print newspapers with a critical stance have been shut down<\/em>,\u201d the report said.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The government owns three television stations, including AzTV, and a news agency called Azertag.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But there are also dozens of privately owned pro-government outlets&nbsp; \u2014 and a lack of transparency requirements means details about who controls them are not publicly recorded. Azerbaijan\u2019s government banned public access to company ownership information in 2012.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Baku TV, for example, is part of a holding company called Global Media Group (GMG), which also controls several other pro-government media outlets in Azerbaijan \u2014 including Report News Agency and the news website <a href=\"http:\/\/oxu.az\">Oxu.Az<\/a> \u2014 as well as Haber Global TV in neighboring Turkey.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But public records do not show who owns GMG.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to publicly available documents registered with Azerbaijan\u2019s tax authorities, GMG\u2019s legal representative and board chair is a former state transport ministry official called Elnur Abdullayev.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His Facebook page shows him with President Aliyev on two occasions. Aliyev awarded him an <a href=\"https:\/\/president.az\/az\/articles\/view\/39960\">honorary diploma<\/a> in 2020 for \u201cservices in the development of mass media in the Republic of Azerbaijan.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In May 2024, GMG became a <a href=\"https:\/\/unglobalcompact.org\/what-is-gc\/participants\/163879-Global-Media-Group\">signatory<\/a> to the U.N. Global Compact, a voluntary initiative in which businesses pledge to abide by sustainability principles, including human rights. The pledge was signed by Abdullayev.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An email sent to Abdullayev via GMG went unanswered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-elnur-screenshot-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"454\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-elnur-screenshot-1024x454.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40061\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-elnur-screenshot-1024x454.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-elnur-screenshot-300x133.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-elnur-screenshot-768x340.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-elnur-screenshot-1536x681.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/aliyev-elnur-screenshot-2048x908.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">President Aliyev (left) and Elnur Abdullayev (right). Credit: Screenshot of Facebook post shared by Elnur Abdullayev Nazim O\u011flu<\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Azeri-Press Agency (APA) is also part of a holding company, APA Group, which controls a range of news websites in Azerbaijan and whose ultimate ownership is unknown.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a 2016 interview about press freedom, APA Group\u2019s CEO Vusala Mahirgizi told BBC News Azerbaijani that APA could write about any issues it wished, and its journalists had no problem obtaining official documents.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>We have access to investigation statements, testimonies from closed court sessions, and information presented during preliminary investigations, all of which we publish,\u201d said Mahirgizi. \u201cWe do not face any pressure or obstacles in this regard.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For media now forced into exile, the story is very different. Meydan TV and Abzas Media both said they were now relying on the courage of citizen journalists to supply information for their coverage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Detained, But Not Silenced<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While local newsrooms are now empty, exiled publications are ensuring that their detained staff still have a voice, publishing their statements, court testimony and letters from prison, which all strike a defiant note.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c<em>We knew that we would incur the wrath of Ilham Aliyev because of our work,<\/em>\u201d said the detained director and founder of Abzas Media, Ulvi Hasanli, <a href=\"https:\/\/abzas.org\/en\/2025\/1\/ulvi-hsnli-kasblarn-qan8556765c-f\/\">at a court hearing in January<\/a>. \u201c<em>However, that did not deter us.<\/em>\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a statement from prison in May, Meydan TV\u2019s staff also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meydan.tv\/az\/article\/meydan-tv-%c9%99m%c9%99kdaslarinin-h%c9%99bsxanadan-cagirisi\/\">said<\/a> they were determined not to be silenced.<br><br>\u201c<em>Those who believe they have silenced us by throwing us behind bars are unaware of the liberating power of prison. We no longer have anything to fear \u2014 we have been arrested, and from here, our voices will rise louder, will be heard further,<\/em>\u201d they said<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Journalists\u2019 letters from prison echo that defiance \u2013 combined with gallows humour and mournful memories of life outside.&nbsp;<br>Former VoA journalist Ulviyya Ali wrote poetically of her final minutes of liberty: \u201c<em>When I arrived at the entrance to the block on the day of my arrest, the red light from the black car cast a beautiful shadow on the rain on the ground. I even took a photo of it, and looked up, and the man who arrested me approached and asked for my phone. Little did I know that it was the last photo I would take in freedom<\/em>,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meydan.tv\/az\/article\/ulviyy%c9%99-eli-m%c9%99n%c9%99-zorakiliq-gost%c9%99r%c9%99n-hec-bir-polis-%c9%99m%c9%99kdasi-da-c%c9%99zalandirilmayib\/\">she said in a letter published in May by Meydan TV.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"386\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40114\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote1.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote1-300x145.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote1-768x371.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Excerpt of the letter Ulviyya Ali wrote and was published by Meydan TV. <\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But her instincts to record what is happening around her have not been stamped out in prison. \u201cWhat I miss the most is journalism, and of course music. I hum to myself sometimes. When something interesting happens on camera, it&#8217;s a pity that I can&#8217;t immortalize it with a photo. But I write down everything that happens.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Aynur Elgunash, Meydan TV\u2019s editor-in-chief, bemoaned the terrible soap operas that serve as her only entertainment in prison. \u201c<em>In my opinion, the main punishment in prison is the obligation to watch local TV channels<\/em>,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meydan.tv\/az\/article\/h%c9%99bsxana-jurnalistin-m%c9%99hv-olacagi-yer-deyil\/\">she wrote in a letter published by Meydan TV in May.&nbsp;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"386\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40116\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote2.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote2-300x145.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/azeri-quote2-768x371.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\"><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-red-color\">Excerpt of the letter <\/mark><\/em>Aynur Elgunash wrote and was published by Meydan TV. <\/mark><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, she finished with a characteristic challenge to the authorities. \u201cI do not regret going to prison at all. Otherwise, I would not be aware of the bitter realities I have experienced. I am a person who believes in the boomerang effect of life. I really hope that those who made the country what it is will also pass through this path one day and drown in the swamp they have created.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Author<\/strong>: <strong>OCCRP<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A relentless crackdown in Azerbaijan has eradicated any semblance of independent media from the authoritarian country. As President Ilham Aliyev casts critical journalists as enemies of the state, they continue to try to hold power [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":40048,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40047","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Death of Journalism in Azerbaijan &#8226; Rise Project<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.riseproject.ro\/en\/the-death-of-journalism-in-azerbaijan\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Death of Journalism in Azerbaijan &#8226; Rise Project\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A relentless crackdown in Azerbaijan has eradicated any semblance of independent media from the authoritarian country. 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