16:44, April 26, 2015
The US State Department has put out a statement condemning the imprisonment of human rights lawyer Intigam Aliyev and calling for his release and all others jailed for “exercising their fundamental freedoms”.
Earlier this week a Baku court sentenced Intigam Aliyev, no relation to President Ilham Aliyev, to 7 1/2 years in prison on charges of illegal entrepreneurship, tax evasion and abuse of power. In his final testimony, Aliyev called the charges “politically motivated” due to the nature of his work.
Aliyev is a well-known human rights lawyer and government critic who has brought hundreds of cases before the European Court of Human Rights. Upon his arrest last August, Aliyev commented: “Those who defend human rights and political prisoners and report on election fraud are considered criminals in this country. [So] I am one of those criminals.”
Armenian News
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