14. Women Journalists Behind Bars
Although in the past, Azerbaijan followed an unwritten rule of refraining from detaining female journalists and activists, these times have passed. As of mid-2025, at least nine women journalists remain behind bars or under prosecution on politically motivated charges.
The arrests have unfolded mainly in connection with three major cases: the Abzas Media case (beginning in November 2023), the Meydan TV case (from December 2024), and the Toplum TV case (intensified in early 2025). Authorities have relied heavily on accusations of currency smuggling, tax evasion, money laundering, and illegal entrepreneurship – trumped-up charges routinely levelled against independent outlets that receive international support.
These cases follow a strikingly similar pattern: sudden raids, confiscation of equipment, denial of access to lawyers in the first 48 hours, prolonged pretrial detention, and intimidation through threats or physical violence. The common denominator is that all of the targeted outlets – Meydan TV, Abzas Media, and Toplum TV – have published investigative reports on government corruption, human rights abuses, and social injustice.
Among those detained are several editors-in-chief. Aynur Gambarova (known as Elgunesh) of Meydan TV, despite a disability, was roughly arrested and now awaits trial on smuggling charges. Similarly, Sevinj Vagifgizi, editor-in-chief of Abzas Media and a recipient of international recognition for her anti-corruption reporting, was sentenced to nine years in prison in June 2024. Both women are recognised leaders in independent journalism whose imprisonment sends a chilling message to younger colleagues.
Others, including Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova, both affiliated with Abzas Media, were sentenced in June 2025 to eight years in prison each on multiple fabricated charges. Vagifgizi, Absalamova, and Gasimova have recently managed to write an article from prison that describes poor conditions behind bars and corruption in Azerbaijani jails.
The Meydan TV Case
At least five women journalists from Meydan TV – Aysel Umudova, Aytaj Ahmadova, Khayala Agayeva, Fatima Movlamli, Aynur Gambarova (Elgunesh) and Ulviyya Guliyeva (Ali) – are currently facing trial on charges of currency smuggling. Their arrests on 6 December 2024 marked one of the most significant coordinated actions against a single media outlet in recent years. Denied access to lawyers in the early stages of detention, the journalists have since endured repeated extensions of pretrial detention, physical mistreatment in courtrooms, and disregard for their health conditions.
Fatima Movlamli, the youngest at just 24 years, was arrested after publicly anticipating her own detention in a video message. She has reported beatings by prison escort officers and insists that police planted evidence in her apartment. Aytaj Ahmadova was forcibly dragged from a courtroom in June 2025 after her request to marry while in detention was rejected – an incident that highlighted the punitive, degrading treatment often meted out to women journalists.
Her colleague, Ulviyya Guliyeva, arrested in May 2025, was subjected to severe physical abuse, including beatings, hair pulling, and threats of rape while in custody. Reports of head injuries and repeated vomiting raise grave concerns about her access to medical care. Her case epitomises the violence and humiliation female detainees are forced to endure.
The Toplum TV Case
The wave of repression has also extended to Toplum TV, with Shahnaz Beylerghizi among those targeted. Beylerghizi, a well-known journalist and mother of two, was arrested in February 2025 on multiple financial crime charges. Although her detention was later modified to house arrest due to severe health conditions, the charges remain active.
The imprisonment and prosecution of these ten women journalists are part of Azerbaijan’s broader crackdown on independent media. The use of fabricated financial crime charges, combined with mistreatment in detention and neglect of due process, shows a calculated effort to silence dissent and dismantle independent outlets.