MEPs Call on EU to Impose Sanctions on Azerbaijan over Ongoing Crackdown on Critics

Members of the European Parliament have issued a joint statement condemning the latest prison sentences handed down to journalists, researchers, and activists in Azerbaijan, calling on the EU to impose targeted sanctions against Azerbaijani officials responsible for human rights violations.

Mounir Satouri, Chair of the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Human Rights, Nils Ušakovs, Chair of the Delegation for relations with the South Caucasus, and Dan Barna, the European Parliament’s Standing Rapporteur on Azerbaijan, described the recent court rulings as “a new stage in the regime’s ruthless crackdown on dissent.”

On June 23, 2025, Azerbaijani researcher and peace activist Bahruz Samadov, a PhD candidate at Charles University in Prague, was sentenced to 15 years in prison on politically motivated charges of treason. Samadov was arrested in August 2024 and had reportedly engaged in a hunger strike and attempted suicide in protest.

Just days earlier, on June 20, seven media workers affiliated with the independent outlet AbzasMedia were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 7.5 to 9 years. The charges—currency smuggling and money laundering—are widely believed to be politically motivated. The sentenced individuals include AbzasMedia director Ulvi Hasanli, editor-in-chief Sevinc Vagifgizi, journalists Hafiz Babaly, Nargiz Absalamova, and Elnara Gasimova, project coordinator Muhammad Kekalov, and Radio Free Europe journalist Farid Mehralizade.

The MEPs also highlighted the recent harsh sentences against other critics, including ethnographic researcher Iqbal Abilov (18 years) and opposition figure Tofig Yagublu (9 years in March 2024). They noted that these cases form part of a broader pattern, with the number of political prisoners in Azerbaijan now estimated to approach 400.

The statement calls on the EU to introduce sanctions against Azerbaijani officials responsible for these repressive actions. It urges the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the EU’s High Representative to refrain from taking steps that may further embolden the regime.

The MEPs reminded that any future partnership agreement with Azerbaijan must be conditional on the release of all political prisoners and meaningful reforms in the field of human rights.

As of now, the Azerbaijani government has not officially responded to the MEPs’ statement.

According to human rights defenders, there are currently 375 political prisoners in Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani authorities, however, deny these claims and reject the notion that anyone in the country is imprisoned on political grounds.