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A journalist from Ann.az was brutally beaten in Azerbaijan on 8 August 2015. Numerous injuries led to his death in clinical center on 9 August. The reason for the attack on the journalist was his criticism on Facebook of Javid Huseynov, a player from the Azerbaijani football club Gabala, according to information agency Turan.

According to the report, Aliyev himself claimed this before his death. He said he had shared a report and a video, which showed an incident after a 6 August 2015 match of Europa League third qualifying round between Gabala and Cypriot Apollon. When asked by a Cypriot journalist why he had risen the Turkish flag after the match, Huseynov answered that “the Turks are my friends” and showed an offensive gesture to the media representative. Aliyev commented on the incident, writing that he would not like that “someone this amoral, impertinent and unable to control himself” represent the country on European football fields.

Aliyev said the status update was followed by insulting comments on his page. On 8 August in the afternoon, the journalist got a phone call from a person, who introduced himself as Huseynov’s cousin and started to insult and threaten him.

“Later Javid Huseynov called himself. We had a normal conversation. He said his gesture was not understood correctly. Actually, he meant Azerbaijan and Turkey are friends. I put this on Facebook, too. Later, I got another call from the person who called himself Javid Huseynov’ cousin. He spoke in a normal tone, too, and even offered to meet for a tea as a sign of reconciliation. I said it was not necessary, but he insisted. Then I said I was in Bailovo, and they arrived. I went to meet them alone. There were five or six of them. They immediately overwhelmed me and started beating. I dropped my mobile, they took it and hid themselves. I turned to the local ambulance substation. They brought me to Semashko Hospital (City Clinical Center). Now I am here,” Aliyev told Turan correspondent.

According to the report, Rasim Aliyev was buried in a cemetery in Mekhtiabad settlement. A number of democratic community representatives, including politicians, civil activists and journalists, attended the funeral. Speaking by Aliyev’s grave, the head of the National Strategic Thought Center, Isa Gambar, said Rasim Aliyev was a brave and talented journalist.
“Clearly, he died for freedom of speech. Irrespective of those standing behind the crime, whether there were doctors’ mistakes or not, it is obvious, that the regime is guilty of Rasim’s death, the regime that generates lawlessness, and creates opportunities for committing crimes against journalists and free minds. But the time will come and this regime will be held responsible for these crimes,” Gambar said.

Investigative journalist Shahveled Chobanoglu said Aliyev’s murder was the fruit of the climate of impunity for crimes in the country, especially for those committed against the journalists. “Everyone thinks they can treat the journalist the way the authorities do.

There is an opinion that the independent and opposition journalists can be freely beaten. When people see the police beat the journalists without being punished, they think they can also use force against press,” Chobanoglu said. He drew attention to the fact that the footballer’s relatives are those responsible for the crime against the journalist, according to the preliminary version.

“Azerbaijani authorities declared Azerbaijan a sporting state and gave privileges to the sportsmen. Consequently, this came to mean that the sportsmen can do anything they like. Rasim is the victim of this permissiveness,” Chobanoglu stressed.

Haqqin.az adds that the murdered journalist was a calm and quiet person, and actually did not meddle in any conflicts. This is how his colleagues from The Institute for Reporters' Freedom and Safety (IRFS), headed by Emin Huseynov, described him. He started his journalistic work in 2007 with Emin Huseynov and was admitted to work at the IRFS as a photojournalist. He also appeared as a witness on IRFS case and was interrogated in the Prosecutor’s Office for the case. After the institute was closed down, he started to work as a freelance journalist and mainly specialized in sport.

According to the report, a few years ago, the police attacked him during a protest as he was filming a policeman’s argument with a young participant of the campaign. The policeman insulted the girl. “When he saw that I was filming it on a video, he attacked me, too. The policeman with a sergeant’s rank hit me on the throat for several times with his fist, shouting, ‘Who are you filming now?’” Rasim Aliyev said. He said the policeman beat him although he wore an identification vest reading “Press.” The police officers also seized Aliyev’s mobile, however, a man dressed in civilian clothes returned it to the journalist soon after. Rasim Aliyev was then invited to Baku city Main Police Department. Deputy Chief of Baku Main Police Office, Sahlab Bagirov, and the head of Sabail District Police department met him and showed him the order of the head of Baku city Main Police Department about the dismissal of the policemen, who had conducted illegal actions against the journalist.

Information agency Trend cites the joint statement issued by the Office of Prosecutor General and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan about the initiation of a criminal case on the journalist’s murder. Ali Hasanov, the adviser to the President of Azerbaijan on social and political issues, said some media outlets’ attempts to give various interpretations to the case before the due state offices issue information is not permissible. They are recommended to wait for the results of the objective investigation.

According to 1news.az, Azerbaijan Press Council Chairman Aflatun Amashev called the investigators to take into consideration the fact that several incidents recently took place, and some forces try to present them as an example of the absence of freedom of speech in Azerbaijan. “Meanwhile, there are 1.5 million social network users in the country. The social network is still not considered a media. However, the Press Council, among others, is concerned about the violations of ethical norms in statuses in the social media,” Amashev said.

The Football Club Gabala also released a statement on the journalist’s death. “Although Javid Huseynov is a very important player for Gabala team, he is suspended from the first team squad before the details of this case are made clear,” Gabala said in the statement.

Minval.az noted certain oddities regarding the suspects of Rasim Aliyev’s murder. Yesterday, the Azerbaijani media ran information about the identification of the suspects, according to which, one of them, the footballers’ cousin, was already arrested. However, the night shift officer at Baku city Main Police Department denied the information.

Still, Minval.az was able to find out that a suspect had been arrested for the case. The arrested suspect is Elshan Huseynov, the cousin of Javid Huseynov, the former captain of the Football club Gabala, suspended from the team on 9 August 2015.
According to the information, Elshan, 21, gave up to the police and is currently in jail. He is a defender at AZAL football club’s second team.

The killed journalist would turn 31 on 16 August.

Rasim Aliyev became the third journalist murdered in Azerbaijan over the past 10 years. In March 2005, Elmar Huseynov, the editor of the Azerbaijani opposition magazine Monitor, was killed at the entrance to his home. In November 2011, the columnist journalist Rafig Tagi died in hospital a few days after being stubbed. Despite the authorities’ public promises, the murders remain undiscovered so far.