Index on Censorship strongly condemns the sentencing of Leyla and Arif Yunus to 8.5 and 7 years in prison, respectively. The ongoing and capricious judicial harassment of Azerbaijan’s civil society by the government of President Ilham Aliyev has reached a new low.

Leyla Yunus, founder and director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy, and her husband, historian Arif Yunus, have been detained since summer 2014 when they were arrested on charges of treason and fraud.

Index calls on the international community to take concrete actions to pressure the government of Azerbaijan to respect freedom of expression and release all journalists and human rights activists in prison.

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