https://freewomenjournalists.com/ Case updates on the nine Azerbaijani women journalists imprisoned for their reporting. Next hearing: 2026-09-14. en Tue, 18 Aug 2026 13:53:22 GMT Fri, 07 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT 720 https://www.meydan.tv/en/article/meydan-tv-case-the-conscience-of-azerbaijani-society-is-on-trial/ https://www.meydan.tv/en/article/meydan-tv-case-the-conscience-of-azerbaijani-society-is-on-trial/#2026-08-07 Fri, 07 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT Court Update Aytaj Tapdig delivered an extensive defence of Meydan TV's journalism and declined the prosecutor's questions: 'I would answer the prosecutor's questions in court. But there is no court here.' Aysel Umudova testified about her years documenting poverty alongside official narratives. The next hearing is set for 14 September 2026 — still no verdict. Source: meydan.tv https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/77493 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/77493#2026-08-05 Wed, 05 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT Medical Care Rights defenders report Absalamova suffers chronic sinusitis with severe headaches in Lankaran prison and has been refused an MRI for over six months; Tapdig is in worsening respiratory distress in Baku Detention Centre No. 1. ACAT-France: every detainee has the right to necessary medical assistance. Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://www.meydan.tv/en/article/aytaj-tapdigs-letter-from-prison-exposes-medical-neglect-in-azerbaijans-detention-system/ https://www.meydan.tv/en/article/aytaj-tapdigs-letter-from-prison-exposes-medical-neglect-in-azerbaijans-detention-system/#2026-08-01 Sat, 01 Aug 2026 00:00:00 GMT Prison In a letter published by Meydan TV she described 20 months of denied care — 80 boxes of nasal spray in place of treatment — and demanded the Justice Ministry recruit qualified doctors: 'By imprisoning people, the state deprives them not only of their liberty but also of one of their most fundamental rights.' Source: meydan.tv https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/77322 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/77322#2026-07-30 Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT International Human rights defenders condemned an incident at the 24 July hearing in which a Penitentiary Service officer grabbed Dilruba Amanova — Tapdig's mother — under the arm and forcibly removed her from the courtroom. Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/07/29/azerbaijan-jails-prominent-tv-journalists-media-workers https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/07/29/azerbaijan-jails-prominent-tv-journalists-media-workers#2026-07-29 Wed, 29 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT International Human Rights Watch called the Toplum TV sentences the longest imposed during Azerbaijan's yearslong campaign against independent media and civil society, and noted the Meydan TV trial of 12 journalists remains ongoing. Source: hrw.org https://cpj.org/2026/07/azerbaijan-cpj-condemns-shocking-sentences-handed-down-in-toplum-tv-case/ https://cpj.org/2026/07/azerbaijan-cpj-condemns-shocking-sentences-handed-down-in-toplum-tv-case/#2026-07-27 Mon, 27 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sentencing The Baku Grave Crimes Court jailed nine journalists, media workers and civil society figures for between 12 and 15 years on currency-smuggling and financial charges — the same template used against Abzas Media and Meydan TV. Toplum TV editor Shahnaz Beylergizi remains under a travel ban in a separate investigation. Source: cpj.org https://www.irfs.org/news-feed/azerbaijan-journalists-allege-police-evidence-planting-in-meydan-tv-trial/ https://www.irfs.org/news-feed/azerbaijan-journalists-allege-police-evidence-planting-in-meydan-tv-trial/#2026-07-24 Fri, 24 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT Court Update Aghayeva declined to answer the state prosecutor's questions and reported that her phone calls were cut off and her letters withheld. Fatima Movlamli testified on the systematic suppression of independent media. A co-defendant said police planted €30,000 in his luggage. Source: irfs.org https://www.fidh.org/en/region/europe-central-asia/azerbaijan/azerbaijan-serious-concerns-over-the-ill-treatment-of-five-women https://www.fidh.org/en/region/europe-central-asia/azerbaijan/azerbaijan-serious-concerns-over-the-ill-treatment-of-five-women#2026-07-23 Thu, 23 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT Medical Care The Observatory named Aytaj Ahmadova, Ulviyya Ali, Aysel Umudova, Khayala Aghayeva and Nargiz Absalamova, detailing refused MRI scans, an unexamined pituitary microadenoma, untreated breathing conditions and the February cell search in which officers made sexually explicit remarks. Source: fidh.org https://www.irfs.org/news-feed/cpj-demands-medical-care-for-jailed-azerbaijani-journalist-aytaj-tapdig/ https://www.irfs.org/news-feed/cpj-demands-medical-care-for-jailed-azerbaijani-journalist-aytaj-tapdig/#2026-07-16 Thu, 16 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT Medical Care CPJ said the Meydan TV journalist suffers severe breathing difficulties worsened by detention conditions and has used 80 boxes of nasal spray during 20 months in custody. Prison authorities never answered the formal medical request her lawyer filed on 19 June. Source: irfs.org https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-trial-resumes/ https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-trial-resumes/#2026-07-03 Fri, 03 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT Court Update A new panel of judges and a new prosecutor took over. Aynur Elgunesh's lawyer sought house arrest citing her 17 operations; Aytaj Tapdig said she had been told she would receive no treatment; Fatima Movlamli told the prosecutor the arrest order came from the president. All defendants pleaded not guilty. Source: jam-news.net https://agenceurope.eu/en/bulletin/article/13896/25/parliamentary-assembly-of-council-of-europe-condemns-repression-of-critical-voices-in-azerbaijan https://agenceurope.eu/en/bulletin/article/13896/25/parliamentary-assembly-of-council-of-europe-condemns-repression-of-critical-voices-in-azerbaijan#2026-06-25 Thu, 25 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT International The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a resolution condemning the repression of journalists, activists and opposition figures, and asked the Secretary General to invoke Article 52 of the European Convention on Human Rights to demand explanations from Baku. Source: agenceurope.eu https://www.occrp.org/en/news/azerbaijani-court-replaces-entire-judicial-panel-in-meydan-tv-trial-raising-fears-of-retrial https://www.occrp.org/en/news/azerbaijani-court-replaces-entire-judicial-panel-in-meydan-tv-trial-raising-fears-of-retrial#2026-06-17 Wed, 17 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT Trial Collapse All three judges hearing the case were replaced, raising fears the seven-month trial would restart from zero. Defence lawyer Nemat Karimli said the trial would have to start over; the defence called it psychological pressure and deliberate delay. Source: occrp.org https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/76186 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/76186#2026-06-16 Tue, 16 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT Award IPI and International Media Support honoured both outlets whose journalists remain imprisoned. Abzas acting director Gunel Safarova called it 'an important sign of support, showing that our colleagues unjustly sentenced to years in prison are not forgotten.' Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/06/12/azerbaijan-rearrests-journalist-forcibly-returned-from-georgia https://www.hrw.org/news/2026/06/12/azerbaijan-rearrests-journalist-forcibly-returned-from-georgia#2026-06-12 Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT International Azel.TV editor Afgan Sadigov was re-detained in Baku by masked men after Georgia deported him in violation of a binding ECHR interim measure — a pattern Human Rights Watch calls transnational repression. Source: hrw.org https://oc-media.org/jailed-abzas-media-journalists-call-on-von-der-leyen-to-address-human-rights-ahead-of-baku-visit/ https://oc-media.org/jailed-abzas-media-journalists-call-on-von-der-leyen-to-address-human-rights-ahead-of-baku-visit/#2026-06-01 Mon, 01 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT Legal The seven imprisoned Abzas Media journalists urged the European Commission President to raise human rights publicly, press for the release of political prisoners, and 'not to sacrifice values for economic interests' in a country 'where critical voices are systematically silenced.' Source: oc-media.org https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-journalists-protest-in-court-in-azerbaijan-will-begin-a-dry-hunger-strike/ https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-journalists-protest-in-court-in-azerbaijan-will-begin-a-dry-hunger-strike/#2026-05-22 Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Court Update Judges interrupted Aghayeva and had her removed after she mentioned the president's son. Aytaj Tapdig warned the defendants would begin a dry hunger strike if they were not allowed to speak. Ulviyya Ali said the trials were being deliberately delayed. Source: jam-news.net https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/75057 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/75057#2026-05-06 Wed, 06 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT International Michael Abramowitz called her arrest politically driven and part of a broader campaign against independent media, urging authorities to 'ensure her well-being, review the charges in a fair and transparent manner, and take appropriate steps to secure her release.' Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/74970 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/74970#2026-05-03 Sun, 03 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Award On World Press Freedom Day, a coalition of more than 40 media organisations placed the Abzas Media editor-in-chief on its annual list of journalists most urgently in need of release — for the second consecutive year. Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/74906 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/74906#2026-05-01 Fri, 01 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Court Update After the hearing was postponed, five imprisoned women journalists held posters reading 'Journalism is not a crime!' and chanted press-freedom slogans in the Baku Court of Grave Crimes ahead of World Press Freedom Day. Security filed disciplinary reports against them. Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://www.irfs.org/news-feed/world-press-freedom-index-2026-a-deepening-crisis-in-azerbaijan-and-beyond/ https://www.irfs.org/news-feed/world-press-freedom-index-2026-a-deepening-crisis-in-azerbaijan-and-beyond/#2026-04-30 Thu, 30 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT Press Freedom Azerbaijan dropped from 160th to 171st place with a score of 23.95 in RSF's World Press Freedom Index, which counts at least 30 journalists behind bars in the country. Source: irfs.org https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/74250 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/74250#2026-04-04 Sat, 04 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT Legal A joint communication by three UN Special Rapporteurs, made public on 4 April 2026, cites violence, rape threats and coercion during her arrest, denial of medical examinations including an MRI, and calls on Azerbaijan to ensure her safety, medical care and an independent investigation. Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://cpj.org/2026/04/azerbaijan-supreme-court-rejects-appeal-of-7-abzas-media-rfe-rl-imprisoned-journalists/ https://cpj.org/2026/04/azerbaijan-supreme-court-rejects-appeal-of-7-abzas-media-rfe-rl-imprisoned-journalists/#2026-04-03 Fri, 03 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT Final Verdict Azerbaijan's Supreme Court rejected the cassation appeals of the Abzas Media journalists, putting the sentences of Sevinj Vagifgizi (9 years), Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova (8 years each) beyond domestic challenge. Every remedy inside the country is now exhausted; only the European Court of Human Rights remains. Source: cpj.org https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-trial-in-azerbaijan-judge-intervenes-at-mention-of-heydar-aliyevs-name/ https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-trial-in-azerbaijan-judge-intervenes-at-mention-of-heydar-aliyevs-name/#2026-04-03 Fri, 03 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT Court Update At a Meydan TV hearing the same week as the Supreme Court ruling, the judge declined to let Tapdig speak despite her insistence that her motion concerned torture. Lawyers' requests to present motions first were overruled. Source: jam-news.net https://cpj.org/2026/03/azerbaijani-journalist-ahmad-mammadli-sentenced-to-6-years-in-prison/ https://cpj.org/2026/03/azerbaijani-journalist-ahmad-mammadli-sentenced-to-6-years-in-prison/#2026-03-19 Thu, 19 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sentencing Journalist from Yoldash Media arrested alongside Ulviyya Ali sentenced to six years. Police claim to have found a knife but his fingerprints were not on it. Azerbaijan now ranks as the 6th worst jailer of journalists globally. Source: cpj.org https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-case-in-azerbaijan-if-i-wrote-paid-articles-i-would-choose-local-officials-not-foreigners/ https://jam-news.net/meydan-tv-case-in-azerbaijan-if-i-wrote-paid-articles-i-would-choose-local-officials-not-foreigners/#2026-03-13 Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT Court Update Aytaj, Khayala, and Aysel said they were forcibly brought to court. All three entered in house slippers as protest. They demanded to sit beside lawyers instead of the glass cage. Source: jam-news.net https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/73417 https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/73417#2026-03-08 Sun, 08 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT Hunger Strike Azerbaijan's youngest jailed journalist declared a hunger strike protesting the ban on family visits for Meydan TV detainees. She ended it on March 10 after two days. Source: eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu https://rsf.org/en/azerbaijan-nine-jailed-women-journalists-report-sexual-abuse-detainees-handed-roses-international https://rsf.org/en/azerbaijan-nine-jailed-women-journalists-report-sexual-abuse-detainees-handed-roses-international#2026-03-01 Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT RSF RSF warned of the plight of nine women journalists imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Roses handed on March 8 ring hollow amid torture reports. Source: rsf.org https://rsf.org/en/country/azerbaijan https://rsf.org/en/country/azerbaijan#2026-03-01 Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT RSF RSF and exiled Azerbaijani organizations launched a symbolic postcard campaign for Sevinj Vagifgizi and other jailed reporters. Source: rsf.org https://ipi.media/international-womens-day-2026/ https://ipi.media/international-womens-day-2026/#2026-03-01 Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT IPI The International Press Institute featured Azerbaijan's imprisoned women journalists as part of a global spotlight on women journalists behind bars. Source: ipi.media https://nhc.no/en/nine-women-journalists-in-azerbaijan-in-jail-over-their-reporting/ https://nhc.no/en/nine-women-journalists-in-azerbaijan-in-jail-over-their-reporting/#2026-03-01 Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT International Detailed report profiling all nine imprisoned women journalists, documenting the pattern of financial charges used against independent reporters and their specific detention conditions. Source: nhc.no