Azerbaijan

A court has sentenced a journalist from an independent newspaper in Azerbaijan to three years of jail, while the paper's editor-in-chief may potentially face 12 years imprisonment on alleged bribery and extortion charges, according to recent media reports. The journalist was initially jailed in August on a charge of hooliganism shortly after publishing a report critical of Muslim leaders in the Caucasus loyal to the authorities. The newspaper has not been publishing since raids on its offices in October. The ruling has provoked a strong response from international human rights groups, such as Amnesty International. We believe that Azerbaijan's strategic importance as an energy exporter and transport hub for the US to Afghanistan will prevent significant international political pressure.

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