Opposition figure Gulu Mammadli stated that the arrest of Ali Karimli, leader of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), was expected, but the reasons go beyond simple criticism of the authorities. According to Mammadli, Karimli's publications in major Western media have increased his political significance and visibility abroad, which has caused concern among the Azerbaijani authorities.
Lawyers of the Memorial Center sent observations to the ECHR on the complaints of three Crimean Tatar activists. They are connected with inadequate conditions of detention in the pre-trial detention center.
In 2017, Ruslan Trubach and Kazim Ametov were sent to the isolation ward, where they stayed for more than a year. The overcrowded cells lacked water, adequate toilets and ventilation. Later, their preventive measure was changed to house arrest.
In the same year, a case was opened against Ernes Ametov for "participation in a terrorist organization." He was also placed in a pre-trial detention center, and then his term was extended 14 times. After three years in isolation, the man was acquitted. And then again detained and sentenced to 11 years in prison.