Azerbaijan
Journalist attacked in BakuPosted Apr 19 2008
Agil Khalil, a 25-year old correspondent with Azerbaijan’s daily Azadliq, suffered a deep chest wound after he was stabbed March 13. Azadliq claims the attack is related to Khalil’s reports of investigating possible corruption in Baku. Khalil was also beaten by two men in late February after attempting to photograph the ruins of an olive grove on land that a local businessman wanted to use to build a private villa.
Azer Ahmedov, Azadliq technical director, said Khalil received threats after filing a complaint with local police.
“For the past 10-15 days, Agil had been receiving phone calls from people threatening him or attempting to blackmail him,” Ahmedov told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. “He was also being followed. He told us, after he was attacked, that he recognized one of the assailants.”
Azerbaijani officials have denied any connection to the attack.
The attack is the latest in a string of incidents targeting non-state owned media in Azerbaijan and comes days after the U.S. State Department’s 2008 Annual Report on Human Rights noted “significant deterioration” in the country’s media freedom.
Less than a week prior to Khalil’s attack, Azadlyg editor Ganimat Zahidov was sentenced by a Baku court to four years in prison for “aggravated hooliganism” and “assault and battery” linked to an incident in 2007 in which he was confronted by a man and woman who staged a brawl on the street near his office.