On Friday the 12th, the trial of 12 journalists imprisoned in Baku, in connection with the Meydan TV case formally began.
The journalists are facing a range of financial crime charges allegedly linked to the receipt of Western donor funding, including currency smuggling, money laundering, and tax evasion. Press freedom organizations and legal observers have widely described the case as politically motivated and part of a broader crackdown on independent media in Azerbaijan.
Those on trial include:
- Meydan TV journalists Natig Javadli, Khayala Aghayeva, Aytaj Tapdig, Aynur Elgunesh, Aysel Umudova, and Ramin Jabrayilzade, who were arrested in December 2024 along with Ulvi Tahirov, deputy director of the Baku Journalism School.
- Shamshad Agha, editor in chief of Arqument.az, who collaborates with Meydan TV, as well as Meydan TV freelancers Nurlan Gahramanli and Fatima Movlamli, arrested in February and March 2025.
- Ulviyya Ali, a former Voice of America reporter arrested in May, who has denied any affiliation with Meydan TV.
- Ahmad Mukhtar, a freelance photojournalist, arrested in August.
If convicted, the journalists face sentences of up to 12 years in prison.
A wider crackdown on independent media
The defendants are among at least 24 journalists currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan in apparent retaliation for their reporting. Since 2023, 20 journalists have been jailed on charges related to alleged Western funding, reflecting a sustained campaign to silence independent and critical media voices in the country.
At Free Press Alliance, we strongly condemn the prosecution of the journalists in the Meydan TV case. The use of financial crime charges to criminalize independent journalism represents a serious violation of press freedom.