Azerbaijani defence lawyer Zabil Qahramanov sent to trial

Zabil Qahramanov

An Azerbaijani court has received the case of Zabil Qahramanov, a prominent defence lawyer who human rights groups recognise as a political prisoner.

The Ganja City Court, under Judge Ulkar Babazade, will hear the trial of Qahramanov, who faces multiple charges including fraud and hooliganism, local news agency APA reported.

Qahramanov was arrested on 23 October last year after being accused of injuring a person at a car wash, but state prosecutors later added more severe charges.

He now faces four charges under the Azerbaijani Criminal Code. These include resisting a representative of authority during an alleged incident of hooliganism, and three counts of fraud, including abusing his professional position to cause significant financial damage.

Two weeks before his arrest, on 8 October, the Azerbaijani Bar Association suspended Qahramanov's legal licence for six months.

Qahramanov is widely known for defending politically sensitive and high-profile clients in Azerbaijan.

Among his clients was Ilkin Suleymanov, who was accused in a highly publicised case involving the kidnapping and murder of an 11-year-old girl, Narmin Guliyeva, in the Tovuz region.

He has also represented Sahib Mammadzade and Shahin Hajiyev, local leaders of the opposition Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), alongside several other political activists.

Human rights defenders in the country have strongly condemned Qahramanov's detention, classifying him as a political prisoner whose arrest they say is politically motivated.