Azerbaijan Arrests Critics Ahead of European Games

Azerbaijan has arrested and imprisoned critics ahead of the European Games set to take place there, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW). “At the same time as Azerbaijan is trying to promote an extremely progressive image abroad, what we see happening at home is extremely regressive and abusive,” says Jane Buchanan, HRW Associate Director for Europe and Central Asia.

Many of the countries leading independent human rights activists have been arrested on politically motivated charges, HRW said. Giorgi Gogia, a senior researcher with HRW, was recently refused entry to the country, unprecedented in the more than 25 years the NGO has been operating there. Credit: YouTube/HumanRightsWatch