Support Committee Says Pressure on Jailed Opposition Leader Ali Karimli Has Intensified

The committee defending the rights of imprisoned Azerbaijan Popular Front Party (APFP) chairman Ali Karimli says physical and psychological pressure against the opposition leader has intensified during his detention at the State Security Service (SSS).

Karimli has been held for eight months on charges that he and his supporters describe as fabricated and politically motivated.

According to a statement issued by the Committee for the Defense of Ali Karimli’s Rights, previously reported restrictions on his detention conditions remain in place, while several new limitations have recently been introduced.

The committee says a prisoner with mental health problems, who is reportedly facing terrorism-related charges, remains in the same cell as Karimli. According to the statement, the inmate regularly makes loud noises at night and prevents Karimli from sleeping. The committee alleges that the placement was deliberate and is being used as a form of psychological pressure.

Restrictions on Karimli’s meetings and telephone conversations with his family, time spent outdoors, and access to daily news also reportedly remain in force.

The committee says additional restrictions have recently been imposed, including limitations on receiving food parcels from his family. Television broadcasts in his cell, which had reportedly been restored for a short period, have again been cut off.

The statement also alleges that Karimli’s handwritten notes are being confiscated, including legal motions he prepares for court proceedings.

According to the committee, his lawyers are also being prevented from bringing written notes into meetings with him, with such materials allegedly confiscated by detention officials.

The committee claims that the restrictions and what it describes as inhuman treatment intensified following Karimli’s appearances in international media, particularly after an interview with France 24.

It further alleges that the measures are politically motivated and directly linked to his continued public criticism of the Azerbaijani government. The committee specifically accused President Ilham Aliyev of bearing responsibility for the pressure, although no evidence supporting a direct presidential order was presented in the statement.

The Azerbaijani authorities have not publicly responded to these specific allegations.

The committee also said complaints filed by Karimli’s lawyers regarding his detention conditions have not been accepted for consideration by district and appellate courts.

Karimli’s supporters argue that the refusal to examine the complaints deprives him of an effective legal remedy against alleged violations of his rights in detention.

The Committee for the Defense of Ali Karimli’s Rights condemned what it described as cruel and inhuman treatment and called for the immediate restoration of all of his rights.

It also demanded the release of Karimli and other individuals it considers political prisoners.

Azerbaijani authorities reject allegations that people are imprisoned for their political views and maintain that criminal prosecutions are based on specific offenses under national law.