According to an audit conducted by the Chamber of Accounts, more than 11 million manats in financial and legal irregularities were identified during the first phase of the construction of the Shusha Central District Hospital. The audit revealed artificial inflation of project costs, payments for work that was not performed, procurement of equipment not included in the original estimates, and violations of public procurement procedures. The report states that the contract value was artificially increased by 3.5 million manats at the initial stage.

The trial of Anar Asadli, former chairman of the dissolved Azerbaijan Rise Party (AY Party), has concluded.

On May 22, the Baku Serious Crimes Court, chaired by Judge Elnur Nuriyev, delivered its verdict. The court sentenced Asadli to four years and six months in prison, taking into account the time he had already spent in detention.

Earlier, the prosecutor had requested a seven-year prison sentence. The recognized victims in the case, Ogtay Gasimov and Etibar Nasibov, stated that they agreed with the prosecution’s position.

The defense rejected the charges. Lawyer Rasul Jafarov argued in court that Asadli had borrowed money from the complainants and that the matter should be considered a civil dispute rather than a criminal offense. The defense requested an acquittal.

The Shusha State Reserve Administration has announced the results of two additional construction tenders. According to the information released, both contracts were awarded to “DİLER İNŞAAT” JSC.

The tenders cover the construction of multi-apartment residential buildings in the D-5 residential area of Shusha city. Under the first project, the company will construct six four-story residential buildings. The contract is valued at 12.984 million manats.

The second project involves the construction of eight four-story residential buildings in the same district, with a contract value of 24.076 million manats.

The family of imprisoned former member of parliament Nazim Baydamirli has expressed concern about his health condition. According to his wife, Farida Baydamirli, he has not been allowed access to food and medication since May 15.

Farida Baydamirli stated that her husband was first forced to stand under the sun for an entire day and was later placed in a punishment cell.

“We are seriously concerned about Nazim’s life. They are trying to kill him,” she said.

A state tender worth 41.266 million manats for the construction of a new residential neighborhood in the city of Lachin has been awarded to “Hovers Group” LLC. The contracting authority is the “Restoration, Construction and Management Service in Lachin District” public legal entity.

Investigations indicate that the founder of the company, Sabuhi Mehdizade, currently serves as deputy special representative of the President in the Jabrayil, Gubadli, and Zangilan districts. He was appointed to this position by President Ilham Aliyev in July 2024.

Prior to this appointment, Mehdizade held senior positions in several state institutions, including the Ministry of Agriculture and “Tamiz Shahar” OJSC. He also currently serves as vice president of the Table Tennis Federation.

The Baku Court of Appeal has upheld the six-year prison sentence against journalist and civic activist Ahmad Mammadli.

During the May 14 hearing, chaired by Judge Ali Mammadov, the court rejected Mammadli’s appeal. According to the Ahmad Mammadli Defense Committee, the activist first requested acquittal and, alternatively, asked to be transferred to house arrest due to his health condition.

Addressing the court, Mammadli said he expected his motions to be denied and delivered a sharp protest statement: “If that is also impossible, then I ask you to sentence me to death. I know there is no death penalty in our country, but that would be more honorable for me than spending six years in prison under torture.”

Mammadli stated that there was no real evidence against him in the criminal case. According to him, the alleged murder weapon (a knife) was never found, and no blood traces were discovered at the scene.

The Union for the Freedom of Azerbaijan’s Political Prisoners has released an updated list of individuals it considers political prisoners in the country. The list, published on May 13, includes 328 names. This marks a decrease compared to the list published in January, which contained 340 names.

The list was prepared by human rights defenders Leyla Yunus and Elshan Hasanov based on the political prisoner criteria of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).

Azerbaijan has further declined in the global press freedom rankings, placing 171st out of 180 countries and territories, according to the World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on April 30.

Last year, Azerbaijan dropped from 164th to 167th place. In this year’s ranking, the country has fallen even further, placing it among the states where press freedom is most restricted.

For comparison, Belarus ranks 165th, Russia 172nd, and Turkmenistan 173rd.

A new large-scale construction tender in the Karabakh and East Zangezur economic regions has been awarded. “Sea Breeze Construction” LLC, owned by Emin Agalarov, the former son-in-law of the President, has been selected as the winner of a project in the city of Gubadli.

According to the results of a tender conducted by the Restoration, Construction and Management Service for the Jabrayil, Gubadli, and Zangilan districts, the company will carry out construction and installation works for a residential neighborhood in Gubadli. Information published on the unified public procurement portal indicates that the contract is valued at 34,412,372.80 AZN.

Previously, “Sea Breeze Construction” LLC implemented several projects in the Aghdam, Fuzuli, and Khojavend districts. Some of these contracts were awarded through direct procurement without a competitive tender process. The total value of these agreements exceeds 111.9 million AZN.

On April 28, a hearing in the “meclis.info case” was held at the Baku Serious Crimes Court under the chairmanship of Judge Roman Aliyev. The session was attended by defendant Imran Aliyev, as well as Elgiz Gahraman and Tamella Musayeva, who are under police supervision.

During the hearing, Imran Aliyev gave testimony about both his professional activities and alleged ill-treatment following his detention.

He stated that the website he managed operated in cooperation with international organizations and received funding from entities such as the German Marshall Fund, USAID, and the U.S. Embassy, adding that he had paid taxes during his three years of activity.