Journalists in Trouble is a monthly report of incidents targeting Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalists and their work, and developments affecting press freedom across 23 countries. Subscribe for exclusive updates. 

AZERBAIJAN: Farid Mehralizada’s Trial Begins in Baku

On December 17, the trial of RFE/RL journalist Farid Mehralizada began in Baku, Azerbaijan.  

American, British, French, and German diplomats attended the hearing as observers. RFE/RL thanks them for their support. 

RFE/RL President and CEO Stephen Capus said: “The charges against Farid are baseless. Farid is being punished for reporting uncomfortable truths about Azerbaijan’s economy. Azerbaijan must end this sham trial and release Farid to his wife and newborn daughter.”   

Farid was detained in May and charged in connection with a case Azerbaijani authorities brought against the independent media outlet Abzas Media, for which Farid never worked. If convicted, Farid faces up to 12 years in prison. His trial will resume on December 28.   

In a statement released on December 11, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on the government of Azerbaijan to immediately release Farid and others detained in the crackdown on Azerbaijani media and civil society.  

Farid’s unjust imprisonment has taken a toll on his family. While in pre-trial detention, Farid missed the birth of his first child. He met his daughter for the first time earlier this month, during a short visit at the detention center. “It was too painful to see them split up in the end,” Farid’s wife wrote on X. “They’ve already lost precious moments that can never be regained.”  

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 

• “Both of us believe that in our country there should be someone who can speak out about the truth.” Farid’s wife Nargiz Mukhtarova spoke about her husband’s case on the latest episode of Deutsche Welle’s Inside Europe podcast. 

TAKE ACTION: RFE/RL encourages supporters to amplify calls for Farid’s release on social media using the hashtag #FreeFarid.

RUSSIA: RFE/RL’s Nika Novak Sentenced to Four Years in Prison

On November 26, Nika Novak, a journalist with RFE/RL’s Russian Service, known locally as Radio Svoboda, was convicted and sentenced to four years in prison for “collaboration with a foreign organization on a confidential basis.” 

Nika is the first journalist to be sentenced under that particular article of Russian law, which human rights experts say is written so broadly that it could be used to prosecute anyone who communicates with individuals outside of Russia. 

RFE/RL President and CEO Stephen Capus condemned Nika’s conviction on politically motivated charges, which he said “are intended to silence individual reporters and cause a chilling effect.” 

Nika was detained on December 25, 2023, when agents of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) raided the apartment she shares with her mother. 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 

• “An attack on any journalist in any country is a personal attack…on all of us.” Freed RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva discussed the state of global press freedom on PBS’s Firing Line with Margaret Hoover. 
• On November 20, Freedom Now submitted a petition to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on behalf of RFE/RL journalist Vladyslav Yesypenko, who has been unjustly imprisoned in Russia-occupied Crimea for more than three years. 

GEORGIA: RFE/RL Journalists Come Under Attack While Covering Protests

During street protests in Georgia following the country’s contested October parliamentary election, independent journalists, including several RFE/RL reporters, have come under attack by Georgian authorities. 

RFE/RL Georgian Service journalist Davit Tsagareli was punched and thrown to the ground by a riot officer while livestreaming the arrest of protesters on November 29. “I was wearing an RFE/RL jacket, wearing a press badge, and it looked like I was a journalist. This was a deliberate attack,” he said.  

The same day Davit was attacked, a Georgian Special Forces agent pushed George Tchumburidze, a cameraman with RFE/RL’s Current Time TV, off a ledge near Georgia’s parliament building while he was filming the protests. 

Several other RFE/RL journalists have been verbally and physically assaulted by authorities while covering the situation on the ground in Georgia.

HUMAN RIGHTS DAY: Five RFE/RL Journalists Will Spend Holidays Behind Bars

On December 10, we marked Human Rights Day by recognizing the important work RFE/RL journalists do to expose human rights abuses and report the truth across our coverage region. 

Such work sometimes comes at great personal cost. Five RFE/RL journalists will spend the holidays this year apart from loved ones: Farid Mehralizada in Azerbaijan, Andrey Kuznechyk and Ihar Losik in Belarus, Nika Novak in Russia, and Vladyslav Yesypenko in Russia-occupied Crimea.  

December 14 marked three years since Belarusian authorities sentenced Ihar to 15 years in prison for crimes he did not commit. Farid marked 200 days of imprisonment on December 16. On December 25, Nika will mark one year of unjust detention in Russia. 

TAKE ACTION: During this difficult time of year for RFE/RL’s imprisoned journalists, we encourage you to write holiday cards to Farid, Andrey, Ihar, Nika and Vlad. Visit their pages on our website to learn how. 

IRAN: Former RFE/RL Journalist Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison

This month, an Iranian court sentenced Reza Valizadeh, a journalist who previously worked for Radio Farda, RFE/RL’s Persian-language Service, to 10 years in prison on charges of “collaborating with a hostile government.” 

In a statement responding to the conviction, RFE/RL President and CEO Stephen Capus called for Reza’s release. “Time and again, the Iranian regime has attempted to spread its malign influence around the world, trampling on human rights at every opportunity. Clearly, this regime feels threatened by the forces of freedom, including independent journalism,” he said. 

My name is Rowan Humphries, Media and Advocacy Officer here at RFE/RL and the author of Journalists in Trouble. Thank you for reading and subscribing to our newsletter and for standing with persecuted journalists.  

If you are interested in collaborating to amplify the stories of our imprisoned journalists, you can reach us by emailing advocacy@rferl.org.