Amnesty International has condemned as "alarming" a wave of preelection detentions and harassment by Azerbaijani authorities of critics, and it has urged the immediate release of political analyst Bahruz Samadov, who is accused of high treason, and others.
On September 2, the rights group highlighted that the persecution came ahead of the Caucasus nation's parliamentary elections the previous day, amid its ongoing peace talks with longtime foe Armenia, and with Baku preparing to host a major UN climate conference in November.
“The targeting of journalists and activists is nothing short of an attempt to silence dissent and suppress freedom of expression, particularly of those who are advocating for peace with Armenia," Amnesty quoted its South Caucasus researcher Natalia Nozadze as saying in a statement.
"The alarming new arrests and detentions targeting government critics must not be overlooked," Nozadze said, urging the international community to "condemn it in the strongest possible terms."
The Amnesty researcher noted that the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and OSCE Parliamentary Assembly observers described Azerbaijan's vote this month dominated by allies of President Ilham Aliyev as held in a “restrictive political and legal environment."
The group cited the arrest last month of Samadov, an activist and doctoral student abroad, for alleged "high treason" over "critical articles on Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh policy and connections with Armenian activists," which it said "mirrors the July arrest of Talysh minority advocate Igbal Abilov, also charged with 'high treason.'"
Both are still in custody awaiting potential prosecution.
A Baku court on August 23 sent Samadov to pretrial detention for at least four months on the high treason charge, which he rejects.
Samadov has been critical of Baku's military offensives in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, where in 2023 Azerbaijan regained control over territory held for decades by ethnic Armenians backed by Yerevan.
Azerbaijan's Central Electoral Commission, which is packed with loyalists, announced that Aliyev's ruling New Azerbaijan Party won 68 of 125 seats in the voting on September 1 for a new parliament.
There were widespread reports of tampering and other irregularities amid turnout of around 37 percent.
The vote was the second snap election called by Aliyev since Azerbaijan's lightning offensive last year that retook Nagorno-Karabakh and forced tough peace talks with Armenia.
Oil-and-gas powerhouse Azerbaijan was controversially granted hosting duties for the 29th UN Climate Change conference, known as COP29, despite critics' concerns about its democracy and rights record.