Wife of jailed Azerbaijan political analyst charged with defamation

Samira Gasimli

The wife of jailed Azerbaijani political analyst Azer Gasimli has been formally charged with criminal defamation over Facebook posts she wrote defending her husband.

Samira Gasimli faces up to six months in prison if convicted of slander and insult under the country's criminal code.

The private prosecution was launched by Gurbanali Yusibov, the same businessman whose previous fraud and extortion complaint led to Mr Gasimli's 12-year prison sentence.

At a hearing in Baku's Binagadi District Court on Monday, 6 July, it emerged that Mr Yusibov did not attend the proceedings as he is currently in Turkey.

Mrs Gasimli questioned why the complainant was not present in court to face her.

"No one but the person themselves can defend their own honour and dignity," she told the court. "If he was insulted, why has he not come to defend himself?"

Mrs Gasimli's defence lawyer, Ramil Suleymanov, requested that the court withdraw the complaint until Mr Yusibov returns to Azerbaijan. The judge, Samir Nasibov, subsequently postponed the trial.

Mrs Gasimli, who is currently subject to a travel ban imposed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, denies the allegations. She maintains that the legal action is a "political order" designed to silence her.

"This is a case against both Azer Gasimli and Samira Gasimli, who raises the issues of him and other political prisoners," she said. "The aim is to restrict my activities."

Her husband, the director of the Baku-based Institute for Political Management, has been in custody since December 2024.

He was sentenced to 12 years in prison in March after being convicted of extortion following a commercial dispute with Mr Yusibov over a $20,000 (£15,500) investment on the Binance cryptocurrency platform.

Mr Gasimli has consistently denied the charges, claiming his arrest was politically motivated and that he was the sole victim in the financial dispute.

A local civil court in Mingachevir had previously ruled that Mr Yusibov owed the money to Mr Gasimli, though that ruling was later overturned on appeal.