Trial on Avaz Khafizli's murder postponed

A court in Baku has postponed until July 18 the consideration of the criminal case on the murder of Avaz Shikhmamedov (Khafizli), a reporter and LGBT activist. The court session was postponed because one of the judges went on vacation.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Avaz Shikhmamedov, an Azerbaijani freelance journalist, also known as Avaz Khafizli, was killed in February 2022; his cousin was suspected of committing the crime. Avaz had spoken out in defence of the rights of sexual minorities, which caused discontent in his family, the casualty's colleagues have noted.

The criminal case on Khafizli's murder is being considered by the Baku Court on Grave Crimes. On July 4, media professionals and LGBT activists gathered in front of the courthouse where the case was to be heard. They protested against the state's failure to prevent hate crimes.

The court session scheduled for July 4 did not take place and was postponed due to the vacation of one of the judges. The next court session is scheduled for July 18, the "Meydan" TV reported on July 4.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on July 5, 2022 at 03:27 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.