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.
The human rights organization "Freedom for Political Prisoners of Azerbaijan" reported the presence of 392 political prisoners in the country. The published report states that among them are 31 journalists and bloggers, 7 human rights defenders, 39 socio-political activists, 5 representatives of national minorities, 2 opponents of the war, 5 deported political émigrés, 249 believers, and 12 people with life sentences.
The document was prepared by human rights activists Leyla Yunus (Institute for Peace and Democracy) and Elshan Hasanov (Monitoring Center for Political Prisoners), based on criteria defined by PACE.
Despite calls from international human rights organizations, official Baku denies the existence of political prisoners in Azerbaijan.