The journalist told her family during a phone call that while trying to greet her colleague Elnara Gasimova through the ventilation opening in the detention facility, a guard forcefully grabbed her arm and pushed her against the wall.

The editor-in-chief of Abzas Media, Sevinc Vagifgizi, who has been unlawfully imprisoned for over a year on baseless charges, has once again been subjected to violence at the Baku Pretrial Detention Center. The journalist herself informed her family about the incident.

She stated that while on her way to make a phone call to her family, she approached the ventilation opening of the cell where her colleague Elnara Gasimova was being held to greet her. At that moment, a guard named Aygul Babayeva forcefully grabbed her arm and pushed her against the wall.

"Elnara also protested, saying, 'You cannot treat us this way. Everyone talks through the ventilation opening. Why is it forbidden only for us?' The guard responded, 'No, it’s not allowed for you.' We are being subjected to discrimination. Everyone else communicates through the ventilation openings. Right next to us, another female inmate approached the ventilation opening of a neighboring cell and was talking to a girl inside. The guard walked past her without saying anything, without telling her that speaking through the vent was not allowed. But with me, it was different—I was met with violence. My arm was tightly squeezed, I was yelled at, and I was dragged away like this," Sevinc Vagifqizi concluded.

Journalists of Abzas Media have been held at Baku Detention Center No. 1 for more than a year, and this is not the first case of violence against journalists.

In November of last year, when Abzas Media’s imprisoned editor-in-chief Sevinc Vagifqizi and reporters Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Qasimova protested against the blocking of their cell ventilation openings, they were subjected to physical abuse. Guards trapped Sevinc Vagifqizi’s arm between the vent door, leaving it bruised. In response to this, Nargiz Absalamova was insulted by senior officer Azizah Mammadova.

A guard named Vahid also intimidated inmates, coercing them into providing false testimony against Elnara Gasimova. The detainees were pressured to state in their testimonies that they had witnessed the journalist attacking a guard. According to Sevinc Vagifqizi, this was an attempt to provoke Elnara Gasimova and fabricate grounds for opening a new criminal case against her.

The head of the press service of the Penitentiary Service, Tanriverdi Mustafayev, told Abzas Media that the complaint would be reported to the leadership. However, further attempts to contact him were unsuccessful.

Six journalists from Abzas Media, known for its corruption investigations in Azerbaijan, have been imprisoned: General Director Ulvi Hasanli, Deputy Director Mahammad Kekalov, Editor-in-Chief Sevinj Vagifgizi, reporters Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova, and investigative journalist Hafiz Babali. The journalists, who have been in detention since last November, were initially charged with smuggling.

A similar charge was brought against Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (Azadliq Radiosu) journalist and economist Farid Mehralizade, who was arrested in May last year. His case was later merged with the Abzas Media case. On the same day, Abzas Media issued a statement denying any professional ties to Mehralizade.

In August, the charges against Abzas Media were further escalated. Considering the additional accusations brought by the investigation, the journalists now face potential prison sentences ranging from 8 to 12 years.

Local and international human rights organizations view these prosecutions as politically motivated and have called for the journalists' release and for all charges against them to be dropped.