The Baku court refused to recognize the publications about the case of Iqbal Abilov as defamation.
The Yasamal District Court of Baku rejected the lawsuit of researcher of Talysh culture Iqbal Abilov, who demanded to recognize the publications of several Azerbaijani publications about his connections with the Armenian special services as defamation. The hearing was held in closed mode due to the mention of state secrets, despite protests from the defense, which pointed out that the disputed information had already been publicly disseminated. Abilov intends to appeal the verdict in the appellate instance.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on June 11, the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan upheld the sentence against researcher of Talysh culture Iqbal Abilov. The court's refusal to provide a translator from Talysh, as well as the prosecution itself, Abilov called 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 the Armenian special services. Under articles 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 August 11, the Yasamal District Court of Baku completed the consideration of Abilov's lawsuit against the ATV television channel, the Trend news agency, and the online publications Hit.az and Qafqazinfo.az.
According to a statement from the public committee for the protection of Abilov's rights, although it was initially announced that the case would be heard openly, it became known before the hearing that only Abilov's family members and lawyers would be allowed into the courtroom.
Judge Aishen Mamedova decided to hold the hearing in closed mode, citing that the case is related to state secrets. However, Abilov's lawyer Rovshan Ragimova protested this decision. She stated that this proceeding is conducted under civil law and does not contain information that constitutes state secrets.
Furthermore, the committee's release states that the lawyer pointed out that the information that became the subject of the dispute had already been publicly disseminated in the media.
On July 25, 2024, several pro-government media outlets in Azerbaijan published a report on Abilov's case without indicating the source. They noted that Abilov was detained "as a result of special operational measures carried out by the State Security Service (SSS) of Azerbaijan." "During the trial, along with other evidence, "secret negotiations and transactions conducted by Iqbal Abilov via Skype with the head of the Department of Oriental Studies at Yerevan State University and the director of the Institute of Oriental Studies operating in Armenia, Garnik Asatryan, who is conducting targeted work against the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan under the control of the Armenian special services," it was specifically stated in the report on the Qafqazinfo.az website. There were "reasonable suspicions" that Abilov, together with representatives of foreign special services, created an organization "against the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan" by attracting subversive forces from different countries, as well as providing them with "assistance to Vardan Voskanyan (an Armenian political scientist and Iranologist, - note of "Caucasian Knot") and other individuals associated with Armenian special services in carrying out hostile activities against Azerbaijan," Trend noted.
Nevertheless, the judge did not change her decision, the committee for the protection of Abilov's rights reported, citing information from his parents. During the hearing, the plaintiff reiterated his demands: to recognize these publications as violations of his rights, to ensure his right to respond, to receive official apologies from the media, and to pay compensation for moral damage in the total amount of 6,000 manats (about 3,600 US dollars).
Abilov spoke in court in Talysh, and his speech was translated into Azerbaijani by translator Ogtay Askerov, proposed for this role by the plaintiff's side. At the same time, only Trend sent its representative among the defendants. Sahil Kerimli. Representatives of the other media did not appear at the hearing. Following the proceedings, the Yasamal District Court denied Abilov's lawsuit.
Lawyer Ragimova, in a conversation with a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot", expressed disagreement with the court's decision and reported the plaintiff's intention to appeal the verdict in the appellate instance.
An employee of the Yasamal District Court confirmed the information about the rejection of Abilov's lawsuit.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", earlier Abilov's public defender, activist Gilal Mamedov stated that the publications in the media were aimed at discrediting him and forming negative public opinion even before the investigation was completed, which violated the presumption of innocence of the researcher.