Azerbaijan - March 2025

The Azerbaijani government arrested, interrogated, and publicly accused many civil society activists and development workers of ‘acting against state interests’ in March. Country offices for United Nations organizations, the Red Cross, and more were ordered to close. The heads of two civil society organisations were placed in pre-trial detention on charges of illegally implementing foreign-funded grant projects, and many others were pressured or interrogated on similar charges for foreign-funded work that had been properly registered with the government at the time. Government spokespeople also said the work of international organizations is no longer needed due to the country’s economic development, but that some work would continue on a project-by-project basis. Media reports indicated the reason for the closures may instead be the reluctance of international officials to make official visits to the territories in Nagorno-Karabakh over which Azerbaijan gained control in 2020 and 2023. 

Sources: OC Media (1), OC Media (2), Turkiye Today, World Bank