TRIALS IN FEBRUARY 2021
11 February
The trial involving a group of 11 individuals accused of funding ISIS has begun
After the lifting of certain quarantine restrictions the Azerbaijani courts resumed their proceedings, including those against believers. In particular, the trial of 11 individuals accused of financing the ISIS terrorist group, known in the media as “Tovuz case”, continued at the Baku Court of Serious Crimes chaired by the Judge Sabuhi Huseynov. The defendants in this high-profile case, Samir Qurbanov, Aladdin Ibishev, Shahriyar Jabbarov, Aflatun Bayramov, Elgun Ismayilov, Tehran Qasimov, Orhan Qurbanov, Amin Hasanov, Javid Amanov, Yusif Imanov, and Babek Mammadli, were arrested several years ago. They were all charged under the Articles 167-2.2.1 (Illegal production, import, sale or distribution of literature, religious objects and other informational materials of religious content, committed by a group of persons upon a preliminary conspiracy or by an organized group), 167-3.1
(Manufacture, storage or distribution of religious extremist materials, i.e. materials calling for the implementation of religious extremist activities or justifying such activity, either justifying the need for such activities), 214-1 (Financing of terrorism) and 218.2 (Exercises for the purpose of terrorism) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan Republic.
The trial against this group began in February 2020. However, due to the pandemic, the hearing was suspended for an extended period of time.
At the trial, it was first heard the testimony of the witness, Rafayil Jafarov:
“Samir Qurbanov and I lived in the village Alibeyli, in the Tovuz district. Both of us are believers, we performed namaz, studied the Koran, and often and extensively talked about the religious issues. However, I have not even heard anything about Samir being chosen as an ’emir’, as the investigation claimed.
I saw Orkhan Qurbanov at a mutual friend, Asim’s house, in the city of Tovuz and later, in the village of Yeni Surakhani in suburbs of Baku. He invited me to pray together and talk about religion. He also encouraged me to join the community but I refused to do so. There, I also saw Samir a few times but he did not tell me anything about jihad.”
While answering the questions of the Court, R. Jafarov assured that he had seen the accused people only during the prayers in the mosque, and he had just talked to some of them on religious topics. He did not know or hear anything about their other intentions.
At the request of the Prosecution, the Court read out R. Jafarov’s previous testimony given during the investigation. There, he claimed that a man named Tural had been living with Asim, and it was Tural who had been distributing the materials spreading religious extremism, and it was him who had been given the money raised to be sent to Syria. At the previous court hearings, the defendants requested to identify that Tural and bring him to justice as he was the person who had promoted religious extremism and sent out e-materials propagating ISIS. Moreover, Tural encouraged everyone to swear allegiance to Samir as “emir” of the group.
“I was told that Samir was an ISIS representative in Azerbaijan and I had to swear allegiance to him in order to join the group. I asked for some time to think about it but somehow I tried to dodge it. As I had no desire to join the jihadists I quit the sessions. So, I don’t know who swore to Samir,” said Jafarov in the course of the investigation, but he denied making that statement at the trial.
The next witness, Shahlar Salimov, explained that in Baku, he had been renting a flat and working. It was there that he had met Tehran Qasimov, Samir Qurbanov and Amin Hasanov.
“Samir stayed at our place on several occasions when he came to Baku. At that time, we had talked only about the war in Syria. And he said that the locals there had been living as prisoners, and they should have been liberated. He did not tell me anything else about Syria and he did not invite me to join any organisation. He did not tell me that he had been an Azerbaijani representative of ISIS either. And Tehran read us hadiths and ayats from the Koran over the phone. Two years have already passed, and in 2019, I had a serious accident, so I don’t remember much,” he stated further at the trial.
Then, the Court heard Salimov’s testimony, in which he said that Samir had demanded to call him “Abdullah” and approved of ISIS’ actions in Syria:
“He told me that in the city of Raqqa, the Muslims had been captured, and the ISIS had not succeeded to establish their own state yet. Nevertheless, Samir did not show me a video about ISIS, and, in any case he did not have a phone.”
Nizami Mammadov, the last witness to testify at the trial, mentioned that time to time he used to meet Samir Qurbanov and Babek Mammadli in a tea house in Tovuz:
“We were talking only about the religious topics such as how to worship Allah, how to do namaz. I have never heard of Samir’s support of ISIS, jihad, or collecting money to be sent to Syria. I did not notice his radical views either,” claimed the witness.
That was the end of the trial.