Azerbaijan Man Faces 18 Years In Jail For Communicating With Armenian Historian
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Scholar Igbal Abilov was sentenced to 18 years in jail for communicating with an Armenian academic over Skype.
Azerbaijani scholar Igbal Abilov has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for online communications with an Armenian academic. He has been accused and found guilty of 'high treason" and 'collaborating with Armenian special services." The case is connected to his communication with an Armenian academic, Garnik Asatrian.
Asatrian is a professor at Yerevan State University and the Russian-Armenian (Slavonic) University. He is a historian and is known for his expertise in Iranian studies.
The two reportedly exchanged messages over Skype while Abilov was in a third country. As per the court ruling, Abilov was following 'instructions" from Armenian agents and was inciting 'interethnic hostility".
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that, during the hearing, Abilov rejected all the charges brought against him as 'baseless" and 'absurd". It added that Abilov claimed that he had been kept in custody for a long time without any proof of his crime.
He noted he was a student of the Talysh language and culture. Abilov is the editor-in-chief of the Talysh National Academy News, a press outlet of the Talysh National Academy.
Abilov's lawyers told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that they would appeal the verdict.
The case must be seen in the context of the tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia, especially after the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war. This was followed by Azerbaijan's occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023. Nagorno-Karabakh is a region whose control is a matter of dispute between the two countries.
According to JAMnews, Abilov is a man of Talysh ethnicity. He was born in Azerbaijan and spent most of his early life in Belarus. His academic interests include studying the languages and cultures of ethnic groups in the South Caucasus, Turkey, Iran, and the Far East.
He has been held in pre-trial detention since July 22, 2024, as per JAMnews. In the words of his lawyer, 'For many years, he has been working to defend the rights of national minorities, researching their history, and conducting ethnographic studies…Most likely, his arrest is connected to this work."
OC Media reported that Abilov is not the first Talysh historian to face the charge of treason from the Azerbaijan authorities. It reported that Talysh historian Zahiraddin Ibrahimov had disappeared on 26 March in Yekaterinburg, Russia. This was followed by his relatives receiving a letter charging Ibrahimov with several crimes, including treason.
First Published:
May 24, 2025, 14:23 IST
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