Azerbaijani Opposition Journalist Gets Amnesty

Musfiq Huseynov in July 2007

The president of Azerbaijan has granted amnesty to an opposition journalist who rights groups say was jailed for his critical writings.

Musfiq Huseynov was among 99 people granted amnesty by President Ilham Aliyev.

Huseynov, a reporter with the opposition "Bizim yol" (Our Path) newspaper, was jailed for six years in 2008 on charges of accepting a bribe.

Huseynov's relatives said recently he was suffering from tuberculosis in prison and that they were worried about his deteriorating health.

Azerbaijan has faced persistent criticism over its heavy-handed treatment of independent media, most recently in a European Parliament resolution criticizing the jailing of opposition journalists.

compiled from agency reports