The court rejected the complaint regarding the refusal to investigate the treatment of the imprisoned scholar.
The Shirvan City Court refused to satisfy the complaint of Talysh culture researcher Iqbal Abilov against the prosecutor's refusal to initiate a criminal case based on his statement about inhumane treatment during his detention in police custody.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on June 11, the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan upheld the sentence of Talysh culture researcher Iqbal Abilov. The court's refusal to provide a translator from Talysh, as well as the prosecution itself, was described by Abilov as discrimination against the Talysh people. The defense intends to file a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights.
35-year-old Azerbaijani citizen Iqbal Abilov, who lived in Belarus since childhood, came to Azerbaijan in 2024 for his cousin's wedding and was detained on charges of collaborating with Armenian intelligence services. Under charges of treason and inciting national hatred, the scholar was sentenced to 18 years in prison, and the appellate court upheld the sentence. Abilov's relatives believe the true reason for the prosecution is his research on Talysh culture. The accusation of treason seems unconvincing and has become another episode in the practice of persecuting activists from national minorities in Azerbaijan, human rights defenders noted. "Caucasian Knot" has prepared a report "How the arrest of Iqbal Abilov is related to the persecution of Talysh activists".
On July 14, a hearing was held in the Shirvan City Court regarding the complaint of Talysh culture researcher Iqbal Abilov about inhumane treatment during his detention in October 2025 at the Shirvan city police department.
According to a statement from the public Committee for the Protection of Iqbal Abilov's Rights, the court granted the request to provide the researcher with a Talysh language translator, who was presented by the defense. Throughout the process, Abilov spoke in Talysh.
In Abilov's complaint, it was stated that in October 2025, during his detention in the Temporary Detention Center of the Shirvan police, the young scholar was subjected to threats and insults, was deprived of the opportunity to contact his lawyer, was held in inhumane conditions, and was unjustly forced to be in handcuffs during court hearings. "Even though the judge ordered to remove the handcuffs, the police officers did not comply with this order," the statement further said.
Despite Abilov's complaint to the prosecutor's office, it did not conduct an effective investigation and refused to open a criminal case. In his appeal to the court, the researcher demanded the cancellation of the prosecutor's decision to refuse to initiate a criminal case.
However, the Shirvan City Court did not satisfy Abilov's complaint, the release states.
A representative of the Committee also reported that earlier this week, Abilov was transferred from solitary confinement to a regular cell, after which he ended the hunger strike he had been conducting in protest against his detention in the punishment cell. Abilov was also granted a short meeting with his family members.
Abilov was placed in solitary confinement after attending the Yasamal District Court in Baku on July 7 wearing a T-shirt with a couplet in Talysh from a poem by poet Ali Nasir: "When a people loses its reason, it condemns its homeland to death."
It is worth noting that the court began to consider the lawsuit of the convicted Talysh culture researcher Iqbal Abilov against four Azerbaijani media outlets for violating the presumption of innocence and defamation. The court granted the defense's request to involve a Talysh language translator in the process, while rejecting the request to allow Abilov to sit next to his lawyer. The defendants did not appear at the hearing.
An employee of the Shirvan City Court confirmed that the complaint submitted by Abilov's lawyers in the context of judicial supervision was left unsatisfied.
The researcher’s father, Shahin Abilov, noted that an appeal would be filed against the decision of the Shirvan City Court.
"Caucasian Knot" also reported that on July 14, the Garadag District Court in Baku considered Abilov's complaint regarding the actions of the administration of IU-14. As reported by the researcher’s father, Iqbal was repeatedly forced to undergo X-ray examinations at the direction of the colony administration, although there was no medical necessity for this. The court refused to satisfy the researcher’s complaint regarding the actions of the deputy head of the colony, and an appeal will be filed against this decision, added Iqbal Abilov's father.