@IRFS_ORG

Side event on human rights situation in #Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 took place on the margins of #HRC61 The panel featured video interventions from @constantinosefs and @EminHuseynovAZ highlighting transnational repression tactics of the govt Find the recording 👇🏼 youtu.be/m7-pnUV1F6g?is…

IRFS will hold a side event in @UNGeneva on March 23rd at 15.00 CET to raise awareness around alarming human rights violations in #Azerbaijan #HRC61 @UN_HRC

📢@CivicSolidarity condemns the acts of persecution & pressure against Azerbaijani HRD & co-founder of @IRFS_ORG Emin Huseynov, as well as the continued death threats targeting his brother, journalist Mehman Huseynov. Read the statement ➡️ zmina.ua/en/statements-…

❗️Mehman Huseynov addressed @UN_HRC and @MaryLawlorhrds on the threats to life of @EminHuseynovAZ , Azerbaijani HRD and journalist, and himself - as an act of retaliation for their public activities! #HRC61 @UNGeneva 📺 Watch full: youtube.com/live/_4zn4_4nS…

Thanks to colleagues from @ECPMF & @globalfreemedia for raising the issue of illegal surveillance of journalists. ❗️EU must raise its voice against harassment and impunity.

Azerbaijan 🇦🇿& Georgia 🇬🇪 in the focus of 2026 Europe Press Freedom Report by @CoEMediaFreedom Brave @gunel_safarova1 & @irmadimitradze reported the dire state of journalism in South Caucasus. #journalismisnotacrime

The Europe Press Freedom Report is out! Available in 🇬🇧 and 🇫🇷 👉 go.coe.int/LjTes #EuropeForFreeMedia

🕯️ 25 years since the brutal murder of Elmar Huseynov — an independent #Azerbaijani 🇦🇿 journalist and fearless critic of the authorities. There has been no justice for Elmar. We know well who stands behind his murder. The impunity of the #Azerbaijani government has to stop!

Grateful to @pressfreedom for standing up and calling on Swiss authorities 🇨🇭 to ensure my protection! After I raised questions to @presidentaz & @1VicePresident about political prisoners and media repression at the Munich Security Conference, a state-aligned smear campaign was launched against me. Days later, I was followed by armed individuals in Geneva and survived what appeared to be a kidnapping attempt. Since then, surveillance and threats have continued. ❗️This is what transnational repression looks like @CPJ_Eurasia @SwitzerlandOSCE @ignaziocassis @swiss_un @SwissMFA cpj.org/2026/02/cpj-ca…

❗️Another day - another attempt ❗️ Today, in the middle of the day, in front of @UNGeneva I was followed by unknown men again ! I consider this as another murder attempt! Watch the video: youtube.com/shorts/bfdCQEQ…

World Liberty Congress Condemns Assassination Threats Against WLC members, Mehman and Emin Huseynov. Read full statement here: worldlibertycongress.org/world-liberty-…

⚡️ BREAKING ⚡️ Emin Huseynov reports assassination attack in Geneva, Switzerland right after @GenevaSummit took place

❗️#Azerbaijani🇦🇿 government has sent 2 killers who were following me today since I left the conference @GenevaSummit at Varembe 17, Geneva, Switzerland. Their attempt failed. I recognized and recorded them. ❗️Watch the video and share ❗️ youtu.be/Me3gKRll0c0?si…

Qadın paltarı geyinmək ayıb deyil ❗️ 👇🏼 Açıq mətbuat konfransım burada mövcuddur: youtube.com/live/XxgxQKo0D…

❗️Queer #Azerbaijani 🇦🇿 influencer is charged with hooliganism for “promoting immorality” The arrest follows amendments to the Law on Information, adopted on Jan 26 It imposes liability for publicly disrespecting society, offending national values, or using offensive language

The capture of Georgia’s public broadcaster is a textbook case of how governments hollow out democratic institutions from within. This is bigger than Georgia 🇬🇪 . Political capture of public broadcasting anywhere in the region threatens media freedom beyond country’s borders!

❗️Statement by Aysu Ahmadova, daughter of Asaf Ahmadov, head of the Ganja Regional Resource Center, imprisoned in the “NGO case”: He remains behind bars for his human rights work while his family faces serious hardship. irfs.org/news-feed/daug…

@EminHuseynovAZ sounded the alarm on #Azerbaijan’s 🇦🇿 expanding campaign of transnational repression during a side event at @coe organized on the initiative of Member of Parliament Mr. Kostis Eustathiou instituteforhumanrights.org/post/no-critic…

The "Most Resilient Journalist 2025" award has been presented to Ulviyya Ali (Guliyeva) by Free Press Unlimited. The organization announced the news today, February 3rd, during the "Free Press Live" event, stating on their official website: "The Most Resilient Journalist 2025 award is presented to Azerbaijani journalist Ulviyya Guliyeva, who continues her work despite severe repression and risks to her personal life. At the time of receiving this award, Ulviyya has already been unjustly detained for months in the Baku Detention Center. Nevertheless, despite being denied medical assistance, she persistently continues her activities from prison—reporting information, documenting human rights violations, interviewing other political prisoners, and ensuring that the truth is not silenced. The jury highly commends Ulviyya’s extraordinary personal and professional courage, her unwavering commitment to journalism despite physical violence, imprisonment, and the loss of her official platform, as well as the significant public impact of her work. Even behind bars, Ulviyya continues to inform, resist, and inspire." In a letter written from prison, Ulviyya shared her thoughts on being honored with this award: "I greet you all from the Baku Pre-trial Detention Center, where I have been illegally detained for the past nine months. I was honored with awards for my journalistic work while I was free. However, I must admit that the award I received while in prison has moved me even more deeply. For someone in captivity, this is a tremendous source of motivation. Since the age of 17, I have strived to contribute to human rights and serve the truth. Even knowing which country I live in—and that such activity in Azerbaijan often results in arrest—nothing could deter me from this path. I continued my work even after March 2025, when the 'Voice of America' radio station, where I had worked for six years, was closed down. I shared news, reports, and information regarding human rights violations in Azerbaijan through my personal social media accounts, without any compensation. Because I refused to cease my journalistic activities, I was arrested on May 6, 2025, on trumped-up charges. During the arrest, police officers struck me seven times on the head and tore out my hair. Despite this, I continue my journalism even from within the prison walls: I interview other political prisoners, write articles, and shed light on rights violations occurring inside the detention center. The writer Henry Thoreau said that under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just human is also a prison. If anyone thinks that our influence will wane in prison, that our voices will no longer be heard, or that we cannot struggle as before within these walls, they are mistaken. They understand neither how much stronger truth is than lies, nor how effectively and skillfully someone who has witnessed even a little injustice can fight against it. In a world where truth is manipulated, distorted, and traded for money, we continue to reclaim the truth, even from behind bars. I thank everyone standing in solidarity with me—my friends, my family, and especially my partner who has given me unparalleled support during this period. Long live the free press, long live independent journalists, and long live all those who refuse to bow to oppression".

❗️Journalist Mehman Huseynov says security services secretly filmed his bedroom for 5 years, abducted his father & brother, and used sexual blackmail to silence him. 👇🏼 Read more: irfs.org/news-feed/grav…