Activist Vafa Nagi's father was attacked in Azerbaijan.

The elderly father of activist Vafa Naghi was attacked in the Neftchala region of Azerbaijan. The activist linked the attack to her public activities.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," in September 2024, parliamentary candidate Vafa Naghi was detained in Neftchala during a solo protest against the results of the parliamentary elections in the Neftchala district. Along with Naghi, security forces also detained her confidant, Seymur Abbas, and journalist Shahla Kerim, who had interviewed Naghi. They were taken to Baku several hours later and subsequently released. Shahla Kerim stated that security forces thus disrupted her journalistic work.

Vafa Nagi's 74-year-old father, Jamaladdin Nagiyev, was attacked on November 2 in the village of Kholgaragashly in Azerbaijan's Neftchala region, where he lives. "When my father was having lunch at a local cafe, a man attacked him. He started hitting my father in the face, scratching him, and cursing at me. My father became ill and is still in severe pain," Vafa Nagi told a Caucasian Knot correspondent.

According to the activist, who is currently studying for a doctorate at the University of Leipzig in Germany, her father was attacked by a local resident, Azizov.

"In 2020, he (Azizov), threatening a girl in the village with a firearm, forced her to undress, photographed her naked, and then sent the photos to young people in the village. He wanted to discredit the girl he had previously abused. I then publicized this on Facebook*, and he was arrested. However, he is a wealthy man and received a lenient sentence for this serious crime, being released three years later. His attack on my father demonstrates the consequences of impunity for crimes. He attacked my father in retaliation for my exposure of him in 2020," Nagi explained.

She noted that two police officers came to their home on the evening of November 2 and took a statement from her father, but no action was taken against the attacker.

A "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was unable to obtain comment from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Toplum TV, citing Nurlan Aliyev, a spokesman for the Ministry of Internal Affairs, reported that Nagi's complaint was being investigated. Azizov was unavailable for comment.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that in March 2021, Vafa Nagi was detained for participating in a feminist march in Baku.

In 2020, an official and an employee of the village cultural center filed a lawsuit against the activist, demanding that she be prosecuted for defamation. The plaintiffs cited Nagi's Facebook posts* and claimed that she had damaged their business reputation. The activist linked the lawsuit to her work "exposing corruption." On August 21, a judge ordered the activist to remove critical posts from social media, and on August 25, Nagi was notified that she had been expelled from the municipal council. Subsequently, the Neftchala District Court dismissed the criminal proceedings against Vafa Nagi without explaining the reasons for the decision.