US Senator urges Azerbaijan to release Afghan Mukhtarly

US Senator Marco Rubio has called on the Azerbaijani authorities to remove all accusations from journalist Afghan Mukhtarly and release him from prison.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on May 29, Afghan Mukhtarly, who lived in Georgia since 2014, disappeared in Tbilisi. On the other day, he informed his advocate that he had been brought to Baku by force. On May 31, in Baku, the court pronounced the decision to arrest Afghan Mukhtarly. The journalist rejects all charges filed against him, including violation of the state border, smuggling and rendering resistance to a border guard.

"Azerbaijan has continued its brutal crackdown on journalists and free speech. I urge the government of Azerbaijan to drop all charges against journalist Afghan Mukhtarly," the US senator wrote in his Twitter.

The Marco Rubio's reaction to the arrest of Afghan Mukhtarly is "a weighty voice in his support," notes Azerbaijani journalist and analyst Alekper Raufoglu, who lives in the US.

"Marco Rubio is one of the most influential senators and US politicians in general. He was one of the presidential candidates in the 2016 election from the Republican Party. He is well-known as a fervent supporter of democratic values. His statement on the Afghan Mukhtarly's case is an indicator of serious attention at the highest level of the US political power to the journalist's fate and, in general, to the problem of freedom of expression in Azerbaijan," Alekper Raufoglu told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.