Date of Birth: 1 August 1992
Detained Since: 6 December 2024
Affiliation:Independent journalist; reporter for Meydan TV

Charges:

• Initial charge (6 December 2024):

  • Conspiracy to commit bulk cash smuggling (Art. 206.3.2, Criminal Code of Azerbaijan)

• Additional charges announced on 28 August 2025:

  • Conspiracy to commit illegal entrepreneurship in the form of an organised criminal group and in an aggravated and significant amount (Art. 192.3.2)

  • Conspiracy to commit money laundering in the form of an organised criminal group and a substantial amount (Arts. 193-1.3.1, 193-1.3.2)

  • Conspiracy to commit bulk cash smuggling in the form of an organised criminal group (Art. 206.4)

  • Conspiracy to commit tax evasion in the form of an organised criminal group (Art. 213.2.1)

  • Forgery and use of forged documents (Arts. 320.1, 320.2)

Conviction and Sentence:

Trial ongoing before the Baku Assize Court. No conviction or sentence to date.

Political Prisoner Status:

Aysel Umudova  should be regarded as a political prisoner under criteria (a) and (e) of PACE Resolution 1900 (2012):

• (a) Her arrest and continued pre-trial detention violate rights protected by the European Convention on Human Rights, including freedom of expression and freedom of association, in view of her work as an independent journalist reporting on human rights and civic freedoms.

• (e) The proceedings appear driven by predominant political motives, aimed at silencing independent journalists and deterring critical reporting, rather than addressing genuine criminal conduct.

Summary:

Aysel Umudova is an Azerbaijani independent journalist and reporter for Meydan TV, an outlet known for covering politically sensitive issues, including governance, civic freedoms, and human rights. As part of Azerbaijan’s independent media sector, her work has placed her within a professional environment that has faced sustained pressure and repeated accusations of alleged foreign influence.

She was detained on 6 December 2024 during coordinated police operations against Meydan TV journalists. Public reporting indicates that law-enforcement authorities conducted searches of journalists’ homes, seized personal and work-related devices, and transferred detainees to police custody under the supervision of the Baku Metropolitan General Police Department. Courts subsequently ordered her pre-trial detention, which has been repeatedly extended throughout 2025.

Her prosecution follows a well-documented pattern in Azerbaijan whereby journalists are charged with alleged financial crimes—such as currency smuggling, money laundering, and tax evasion—to criminalise legitimate journalistic activity. The case relies heavily on undisclosed “operational information,” police-controlled searches, and associative reasoning rather than publicly demonstrated, individualized evidence of criminal conduct.

Aysel Umudova’s arrest forms part of a broader wave of political repression that intensified from autumn 2023 onward, targeting independent media outlets, journalists, and civil society actors. Observers note strong parallels with previous cycles of repression condemned by the European Court of Human Rights.

International organisations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have denounced the charges against Aysel Umudova and other defendants in the “Meydan TV case” as politically motivated.

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