On March 13th Vugar Gonagov (executive director of Khayal TV), Zaur Guliyev (editor-in-chief of Khayal TV), Zaur Mustafayev (Khayal’s advertising editor) and Jamil Mammadli (Poligon Information Agency correspondent) were detained in relation to the Guba protests and brought to Baku, reported Turan News Agency.
According to their information, Jamil Mammadli’s house was searched. The police did not provide any information about their arrests or the specific charges being brought. The families of the journalists have not been not been informed. Musafaddin Mustafayev, the father of Zaur Mustafayev, reported to Turan that he is completely in the dark: “I am searching my son. The prosecutor of Guba said that they would be released in two hours. But I have received no information about my son for three days.”
Poligon information agency confirmed the arrest of their correspondent. Azer Gahramanli, the editor-in-chief of the agency, said that they have no information about what is going on.
Five Azerbaijani media representatives are currently behind bars under trumped-up charges (possession of fire-arms and drugs, hooliganism, etc). These include Avaz Zeynalli (editor-in-chief of Khural newspaper), Aydin Janiyev (Khural newspaper correspondent), Ramin Bayramov (editor-in-chief of islamazeri.com), Anar Bayramli (correspondent of Iran’s Sahar TV to Azerbaijan) and Ramin Dadashov (driver for Azerbaijani Sahar TV office).