Release wrongfully imprisoned academic Igbal Abilov
Posted May 16, 2025
Scholars at Risk sent the below letter to Azerbaijani authorities, urging them to secure the immediate release of Mr. Igbal Abilov. Take action by signing a letter here.
Via email
The Honorable Ilham Aliyev
President of Azerbaijan
May 16, 2025
RE: Release wrongfully imprisoned academic Igbal Abilov
Your Excellency:
I write on behalf of Scholars at Risk to respectfully urge you to secure the immediate release of Igbal Abilov, a researcher and lecturer at Belarusian State University, who has been wrongfully detained on charges of “high treason” in Azerbaijan in apparent retaliation for his research on ethnic minorities across the region. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.
Scholars at Risk (SAR) is an international network of more than 600 universities and colleges in over 40 countries dedicated to protecting the human rights of scholars around the world, and to raising awareness, understanding of, and respect for the principles of academic freedom and its constituent freedoms of expression, opinion, thought, association, and travel.
Igbal Abilov, a researcher and lecturer at Belarusian State University, specializes in history and ethnography, with a focus on ethnic minorities of the South Caucasus, Turkey, and Iran. Mr. Abilov is an ethnic Talysh and a member of the Talysh National Academy, a consortium of academics who study the Talysh indigenous group. SAR understands that he was conducting research into the history and culture of the Talysh people at the time of his arrest.
SAR understands that on June 22, 2024, Azerbaijan security forces detained and questioned Mr. Abilov while he was conducting field research; he was released later that day. Nearly one week after his detention, Azerbaijani border officials prevented Mr. Abilov from boarding a flight back to Belarus, confiscating his passport and phones. One month later, on July 22, security forces summoned him to a local police station, purportedly to retrieve his personal items, but when he arrived, the authorities arrested him. SAR further understands that two days later, the Sabail District Court of Baku remanded Mr. Abilov to four months in pretrial detention on several charges, including “high treason,” “foreign-agent-instructed public appeals against state,” and “incitement of ethnic hatred.” The court also prohibited him and his lawyer from sharing any documents associated with the case, including with his relatives.
SAR further understands that on July 31 and August 7, the court denied appeals respectively challenging the order detaining him, and the order prohibiting him from sharing documents associated with the case. On November 19, the court extended his pre-trial detention by four more months, until March 22, 2025. We understand that on February 26, the Lankaran Serious Crimes Court began virtual hearings. Mr. Abilov’s lawyer requested an open hearing and home detention for Igbal; the court denied both requests. On May 2, the court held Mr. Abilov’s final hearing; at the end of the hearing, the prosecutor requested a 19-year prison sentence.
According to news sources, the factual bases for the charges relate to Mr. Abilov’s communications with Professor Garnik Asatryan, an Armenian professor specializing in Iranistics and Kurdology. Mr. Abilov’s lawyer denies that he committed a crime, stating that Mr. Abilov’s communications with Professor Asatryan were purely academic.
We welcome any additional information that may clarify our understanding of these events. Absent this, the facts appear to indicate that Mr. Abilov was arrested and charged as a result of his peaceful exercise of the rights to academic freedom and freedom of expression–conduct that is expressly protected by international human rights instruments including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Azerbaijan is a party. Any charges for what we can only assume–absent clear public evidence from the state–to be nonviolent expressive conduct is clearly excessive and contrary to international standards. Detentions and prosecutions in response to scholarly activity raise serious concerns about protection for free expression, academic freedom, and the higher education space in Azerbaijan.
SAR therefore respectfully urges you to direct the appropriate authorities to intervene and ensure that any charges related to Mr. Abilov’s peaceful academic activities are reversed. In the interim, we ask that you ensure his access to family, and guarantee that his case proceeds in a manner consistent with internationally recognized standards of due process, fair trial, and detention, in accordance with Azerbaijan’s obligations under international law.
We appreciate your attention to this important matter and look forward to your reply.
Sincerely,
Robert Quinn
Executive Director
CC:
Colonel-General Eyvazov Vilayat Süleymanoğlu
Minister of Internal Affairs
The Honorable Khazar Ibrahim
Ambassador of Azerbaijan to the United States
The Honorable Yashar Aliyev
Permanent Mission of Azerbaijan to the United Nations
The Honorable António Guterres
Secretary-General of the United Nations
The Honorable Volker Türk
High Commissioner for Human Rights
The Honorable Michael O’Flaherty
Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe
The Honorable Marco Rubio
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State