Human Rights Defender Rufat Safarov Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison

On June 12, the Baku Court for Grave Crimes announced its verdict in the case of Rufat Safarov, Executive Director of the human rights organization Defense Line.

The trial was presided over by Judge Aygun Gurbanova. According to the court’s ruling, Safarov was sentenced to eight years of imprisonment.

Earlier, the state prosecutor had requested a nine-year prison sentence.

Rufat Safarov was arrested on December 3, 2024. He was charged under Articles 127.2.3 (intentional infliction of less serious bodily harm), 178.3.2 (fraud causing substantial damage), and 221.1 (hooliganism) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan. These charges carry a maximum penalty of up to ten years in prison.

Safarov rejects the charges against him and maintains that his arrest is connected to his professional activities and human rights advocacy.

It should be noted that in December 2015, while serving as an investigator at the Zardab District Prosecutor’s Office, Safarov publicly announced that he no longer wished to work within the prosecutorial system and subsequently resigned. Shortly thereafter, he was arrested on corruption-related charges and sentenced to nine years in prison. He was released in March 2019 under a presidential pardon.

In recent years, Safarov has been recognized as one of Azerbaijan’s prominent human rights defenders.