IPD office searched in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijani law enforcers conducted a search in the office of the Institute for Peace and Democracy (IPD), which is headed by rights defender Leila Yunus, who was detained on the eve and questioned at the General Prosecutor's Office (GPO). During the search, they confiscated computers, documents, conference materials and books by Leila Yunus' husband.

At the insistence of Leila Yunus, the process was watched by her five trustees, said Shakhin Gadjiev, the editor of the "Turan" News Agency. He drew attention to the fact that law enforcers got interested in a collection of articles by Akif Nagi – the head of Karabakh Liberation Organization, which advocates for the military way of liberation of the Azerbaijani territories, which are recognized by that country as occupied.

Djamil Gasanli, Chairman of the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF), has stated that what happened with the Yunus spouses is incompatible with the Constitution and international conventions acceded by Azerbaijan. In his opinion the spouses are persecuted for their active human rights activities.

The detention of the Yunus spouses is certainly having grounds, said Mubariz Gurbanly, Deputy Executive Secretary of the ruling "Yeni Azerbaijan" Party. He believes that there is no reason to "raise hype" around the case, because "the national security system is never wrong."

The detention of Leila and Arif Yunus was also condemned by the Norwegian Helsinki Committee.