A day after his deportation from Georgia, Azerbaijani independent journalist Afgan Sadigov was reportedly detained by the authorities in Azerbaijan.
Reports of his arrest came from his wife, Sevinj Sadigova.
‘According to the information I just received, my husband, Afgan Sadigov, has been detained by the police, and I do not know exactly where he has been taken’, Sadigova wrote on Facebook on Monday afternoon.
‘Yesterday, he was deported from Georgia to Azerbaijan on what appears to have been a politically motivated order’, she added.
It is unclear on what grounds Sadigov was detained in Azerbaijan.
A few days before his deportation, Azerbaijan had reportedly halted criminal proceedings against him. However, critics have suggested this may have been a setup for his deportation, with a new case potentially to be launched once he was transferred to Azerbaijan.
A Georgian court ordered Sadigov’s deportation from the country early on Sunday morning, after a late night hearing that lasted mere hours. The ruling came despite Sadigov being under an international protection order blocking his extradition to Azerbaijan over human rights concerns.
The trial was preceded by Sadigov’s surprise arrest several hours earlier for ‘insulting’ Georgian police online. This was cited as the official reason for his deportation.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
Azerbaijan has sought Sadigov’s extradition from Georgia for nearly two years, reportedly accusing him of fraud or extortion. In 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) enacted interim measures barring his extradition until they could hear his case. As a result, Sadigov was released from Tbilisi pre-extradition in Tbilisi in April 2025, but, according to his lawyers, on bail with a travel ban.
After his release, Sadigov continued his sharp criticism of both the Azerbaijani and Georgian authorities, frequently attending anti-government protests in Tbilisi and expressing solidarity with detained dissenters in both countries.
His deportation took place the day before Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Georgia on an official visit. Some have linked Sadigov’s deportation to Aliyev’s visit to Georgia.
Critics of the ruling Georgian Dream party described Sadigov’s deportation as a violation of the ECHR decision. In turn, the Interior Ministry seemed to suggest the opposite, claiming that ‘human rights and freedoms are fully protected in Georgia’.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
Azerbaijan has in recent years detained scores of independent journalists on a variety of charges — most often for the alleged smuggling of foreign currency — in a sweeping crackdown on independent news outlets and civil society groups.
The renewed crackdown on media began with the authorities’ raid of independent media outlet Abzas Media’s offices in Baku in November 2023, and the arrest of a number of its team. Azerbaijan handed out lengthy sentences to the seven journalists detained as part of the case against Abzas Media in June 2025, ranging from seven to nine years.
The authorities have since arrested a number of journalists from Meydan TV and Toplum TV, who are currently awaiting trial.
According to Amnesty International, at least 30 journalists and media workers have been detained in Azerbaijan since November 2023.
More to follow…
