Relatives demand hospitalization of prisoner in Azerbaijan Gasanli

The health of the director of Abzas Media, who is on a hunger strike in prison, has sharply worsened. His relatives claim that he is not receiving quality medical care and are demanding that he be hospitalized.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" reported, on June 20, a court in Baku sentenced journalists and employees of the Azerbaijani online publication Abzas Media to long prison terms. The director of the publication Ulvi Hasanli, editor-in-chief Sevinj Vagifgizi, investigative journalist Hafiz Babali, economist Farid Mehralizade received 9 years in prison, Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gaimova - 8 years, and Mohammed Kekalov - 7 years. On July 20, convicted Abzas Media director Ulvi Hasanli announced an indefinite hunger strike in protest against his transfer to the Umbaki penitentiary complex, where he is deprived of meetings with his loved ones.

As a result of the hunger strike, Hasanli has become weaker, his wife Rubaba Guliyeva told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. According to her, Hasanli is experiencing serious difficulties due to the lack of ventilation. "Ulvi has already fainted because of the stuffiness in the punishment cell. They don't even open the window for him in this heat," the journalist's wife noted.

His weight has dropped from 78 to 65 kg since the beginning of the hunger strike. "Ulvi is receiving virtually no medical care. They only measure his blood pressure. The doctor refused to do a cardiogram, saying that there is no permission for this. Therefore, we demand that Ulvi be hospitalized. However, he has not been transferred to a hospital yet," said R. Guliyeva.

It was not possible to obtain comments from the Penitentiary Service.

You can read about who the publication's high-profile anti-corruption investigations were dedicated to in the "Caucasian Knot" reference "Why Abzas Media Displeased the Azerbaijani Authorities".