Talekh Bagirzade tells about his hunger strike in jail

Talekh Bagirzade, the leader of the "Muslim Unity" Movement, told his wife about the oppression suffered by him in prison and confirmed his hunger strike, which continues for 14 days already.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 27, the "Muslim Unity" issued a statement that Talekh Bagirzade and other convicted activists of the movement had recently faced unprecedented pressure. One of them, Abbas Guseinov, told his relatives that he was on hunger strike since February 3, while Talekh Bagirzade – since January 31.

Leyla Ismailzade, Talekh Bagirzade's wife, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that she could see her husband in the office of the head of the Gobustan Prison in the afternoon on February 13.

"For over 15 days, we had no information about Talekh's fate; and we went to the prison to find out his condition. Avtandil Agaev, the prison top manager, received us. He began denying any pressure on Talekh, and that he was on a hunger strike. We asked why Talekh hadn't called home, while aware that his mother was seriously ill and had recently been operated on. Agaev said that Talekh himself did not want to call," said the wife after her visit to the prison.

According to her story, a few minutes later, they brought Bagirzade himself. "He looked sluggish and over-excited. Talekh said that since the end of January he was not allowed to call home, although he had the right to do so twice a week," Ms Ismailzade said.

Talekh Bagirzade has confirmed to his wife that he continued his hunger strike that he began on January 31.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 14, 2019 at 10:45 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.