On 26 November, Sheki Appeal Court upheld the conviction of 19-year-old Jehovah's Witness conscientious objector Elgiz Ibrahimov. After nearly four months in prison, the court changed the rest of his one-year prison term to a suspended sentence. Officials released him in the courtroom. Ibrahimov will remain on probation, cannot change his place of residence without permission and must wear an electronic tag. He must also "prove through his behaviour that he has reformed".

The Appeal Court panel "believes that the 3 months and 28 days that the Accused was in custody, from 18 February 2025 to 19 February 2025, as well as from 30 July 2025 to the present (26 November 2025), will deter him from committing acts that could lead to the loss of his freedom in the future", the three Judges wrote in their decision (see below).

Ibrahimov had expressed his willingness to perform an alternative civilian service. The Judges rejected his lawyer's arguments that the Constitution guarantees the right to alternative civilian service. They also dismissed the argument that the conviction "grossly and intentionally" violates his rights under the European Convention on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (see below).

Jehovah's Witnesses are conscientious objectors to military service and do not undertake any kind of activity supporting any country's military. But they are willing to undertake an alternative, totally civilian form of service, as is the right of all conscientious objectors to military service under international human rights law.

Ahead of its accession to the Council of Europe in January 2001, Azerbaijan promised "to adopt, within two years of accession, a law on alternative service in compliance with European standards". It failed to do so (see below).

On 17 September, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe commented on Azerbaijan's lack of progress in implementing an alternative to compulsory military service. It noted "with concern" that conscientious objectors "still risk criminal prosecution and other forms of restrictions in particular with regard to travel and employment" (see below).

"Although a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights since 2001, and despite judgments of the European Court of Human Rights on 17 October 2019 against Azerbaijan in the case of five conscientious objectors, Azerbaijan continues to ignore its accession commitments and ECtHR judgments that recognise the right of religiously-motivated conscientious objection to military service as fully protected under Article 9 of the Convention," Jehovah's Witnesses note.

Zahid Oruj, chair of the Human Rights Committee of the non-freely elected Parliament (Milli Majlis), has been following Ibrahimov's case. "I remember well that a court decision regarding a citizen from Yevlakh District was used as an argument by international organisations," he told a local news outlet in September. "The Council of Europe accused Azerbaijan over why this [alternative service] law was not adopted and that person could not benefit from it. However, they did not even investigate whether that citizen really wanted to serve in a civilian capacity for three years" (see below).

Oruj did not respond to Forum 18's questions:
- What happened to the proposals to introduce an Alternative Service Law?
- What progress has the Working Group allegedly set up in the Milli Majlis to draft an Alternative Service Law made, if any?
- Why is there a "danger", as he put it, of introducing alternative civilian service? (see below).

The regime-controlled Human Rights Ombudsperson's Office in Baku has not responded to Forum 18's questions, sent in August, asking what action it is taking (if any) to ensure that Azerbaijan introduces a civilian alternative service for those unable to serve in the army on grounds of conscience (see below).

Telephones at the State Committee for Work with Religious Organisations in Baku went unanswered each time Forum 18 called on 17 December.

A December 2024 amendment to the Migration Code specifically imposed a "temporary" ban on leaving the country for those deemed to have evaded conscription or mobilisation from leaving the country. Yet at least ten Jehovah's Witness conscientious objectors had been banned from leaving the country in recent years even before the Migration Code amendment was adopted. The ban is generally lifted when they reach the age of 30, the upper age limit for conscription (see below).

Council of Europe obligation ignored

Military service of 18 months (12 months for those with higher education) is compulsory for all young men from the age of 18. Legal amendments in December 2024 reduced the upper age limit for conscription from 35 to 30.

Article 76, Part 2 of Azerbaijan's Constitution declares: "If the beliefs of citizens come into conflict with service in the army then in some cases envisaged by law alternative service instead of regular army service is permitted." However, no mechanism exists to enact this provision.

Ahead of its accession to the Council of Europe in January 2001, Azerbaijan promised "to adopt, within two years of accession, a law on alternative service in compliance with European standards and, in the meantime, to pardon all conscientious objectors presently serving prison terms or serving in disciplinary battalions, allowing them instead to choose (when the law on alternative service has come into force) to perform non-armed military service or alternative Civilian service".

Azerbaijan has never done this, and conscientious objectors to military service have been repeatedly prosecuted and even jailed under Criminal Code Article 321.1. This states: "Evasion without lawful grounds of call-up to military service or of mobilisation, with the purpose of evading serving in the military, is punishable by imprisonment for up to two years [in peacetime]".

Local human rights defenders and United Nations (UN) human rights bodies, as well as the Council of Europe's Venice Commission and its European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), have repeatedly criticised Azerbaijan's failure to introduce a civilian alternative to compulsory military service.

In August 2019, the Baku Human Rights Club, which Rasul Jafarov then headed, published its own proposal for the text of an Alternative Service Law to try to put the issue on the public agenda. "We have had no response to our proposal from official people," Jafarov told Forum 18 in April 2020.

In a report issued on 19 March 2021, the Baku-based Institute for Democratic Initiatives called for an Alternative Service Law to be adopted "in accordance with international standards". It said "those, who refuse to perform military service because of their beliefs, should be given a chance to engage in alternative service". It also called for those who had been arrested "in connection with the absence of such legislation and subjected to other such punishments" should be pardoned and the punishments imposed on them lifted.

Jehovah's Witnesses have repeatedly pressed the authorities to introduce an alternative to compulsory military service. On 4 August 2025, their local and European representatives held an online meeting with officials of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organisations in Baku. "The matters of registration and civil alternative service were discussed," Jehovah's Witnesses noted. "However, no progress was made in resolving these issues."

"Concern" that conscientious objectors "still risk criminal prosecution"

On 24 July 2025, a week before Elgiz Ibrahimov's jailing, Free Voices Collective – a human rights group established in exile by human rights defenders, journalists and lawyers – called on the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers to take further action to enforce a 2019 judgment by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg finding against Azerbaijan in the cases of five conscientious objectors.

On 17 September, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe commented on Azerbaijan's lack of progress in implementing an alternative to compulsory military service. It noted "with concern" that conscientious objectors "still risk criminal prosecution and other forms of restrictions in particular with regard to travel and employment".

The Committee of Ministers "recalled that freedom of thought, conscience and religion is one of the cornerstones of a ‘democratic society' within the meaning of the [European Convention on Human Rights], and stressed that the enactment of the law on alternatives to military service in Azerbaijan stems from its own Constitution and from its accession commitment to the Council of Europe in 2001".

The Committee of Ministers "strongly urged the authorities to adopt the necessary legislation without any further delay and to ensure its compliance with the [European Convention on Human Rights] requirements and the Council of Europe standards".

The Committee of Ministers also "noted with deep regret that despite the authorities' previous assurances to provide information about the progress achieved in preparation and adoption of legislation on alternatives to military service, no such information has been submitted".

The comments came in a Committee of Ministers review of measures which Azerbaijan is committed to take to implement a 2019 European Court of Human Rights decision in the cases of five conscientious objectors - Mushfig Mammadov and Others v. Azerbaijan (Application No. 14604/08). Although Azerbaijan has paid the five men the compensation set out by the ECtHR, it has not introduced an alternative to compulsory military service.

Forum 18 again wrote to the Human Rights Ombudsperson's Office in Baku on 19 August 2025 asking what action it is taking (if any) to ensure that Azerbaijan introduces a civilian alternative service for those unable to serve in the army on grounds of conscience. Forum 18 had received no response by the end of the working day in Baku of 17 December.

(In 2018 the Sub-Committee on Accreditation of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions downgraded the Azerbaijani Ombudsperson's Office to B status because it "has not adequately spoken out in a manner that effectively promotes protection for all human rights, including in response to credible allegations of human rights violations having been committed by government authorities".

The Sub-Committee added in 2024 that the Ombudsperson's Office "has not taken sufficient action, nor spoken out in a manner that promotes protection for human rights in response to credible allegations of serious human rights violations having been committed by government authorities. The failure to do so demonstrates a lack of independence.")

"Danger" of honouring alternative service commitment?

Zahid Oruj, chair of the Human Rights Committee of the non-freely elected Parliament, the Milli Majlis, gave various excuses in August 2025 as to why no Alternative Service Law had been adopted, but claimed that "given that Azerbaijan has already liberated its territories from occupation, the adoption of this law will be accelerated". He gave no details on if, when and how an Alternative Service Law might be adopted.

In an interview with Moderator.az, published on 16 September, Oruj acknowledged that introducing an alternative to compulsory military services was among the commitments Azerbaijan made when it joined the Council of Europe in 2001. He claimed however that "the application of alternative military service had not been possible" as long as Azerbaijan was not in control of all its territory. (Azerbaijan finally defeated the Armenian-led self-declared Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023.)

In January 2024, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe decided not to ratify the Azerbaijani delegation's credentials. It cited Azerbaijan's failure to fulfil its major commitments made when joining the Council of Europe, its inability to conduct free and fair elections, weak separation of powers between branches of government, lack of judicial independence, numerous unresolved cases of political prisoners, and humanitarian concerns in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Oruj referred to the Parliamentary Assembly decision when discussing the issue of alternative civilian service. "At a time when the Council of Europe has suspended the mandate of Azerbaijani parliamentarians, we do not think about the relevance of this issue," he insisted to Moderator.az. "My subjective opinion is that only the state leadership can make a decision on alternative service. I do not consider individual initiatives in this matter to be correct."

Oruj warned of several "dangers" over adopting an Alternative Service Law. He claimed that "certain individuals could resort to religious beliefs in order to evade military service and thus take steps to turn to alternative service". He did not explain why this would be a danger.

Oruj noted Elgiz Ibrahimov's case. "I remember well that a court decision regarding a citizen from Yevlakh District was used as an argument by international organisations. The Council of Europe accused Azerbaijan over why this law was not adopted and that person could not benefit from it. However, they did not even investigate whether that citizen really wanted to serve in a civilian capacity for three years."

Forum 18 asked Oruj in writing on 16 December:
- What happened to the proposals to introduce an Alternative Service Law?
- What progress has the Working Group allegedly set up in the Milli Majlis to draft an Alternative Service Law made, if any?
- Why is there a "danger", as he put it, of introducing alternative civilian service?
Although Oruj promised to respond, Forum 18 had received no response by the end of the working day in Baku of 17 December.

Hikmet Mammadov, a member of the Milli Majlis' Defence, Security and Anti-Corruption Committee, claimed that Azerbaijani youth want to serve in the military: "Because the Azerbaijani people are an army-people, they are warlike. Every young Azerbaijani wants to become stronger and gain military experience by passing through the ranks of the army."

Mammadov claimed that there was therefore no need to introduce an alternative to compulsory military service. "It would not be right to take away the right of Azerbaijani youth to serve their homeland," he told Modern.az in an interview published on 16 September 2025.

July jailing for refusing military service on grounds of conscience

Jehovah's Witness Elgiz Elchin oglu Ibrahimov (born 28 June 2006) lives in the village of Arabbasra, 20 kms (15 miles) north of the city of Yevlakh, in central Azerbaijan. On 7 May 2024, when he was 17, the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription in Yevlakh summoned him. "During the meeting, Elgiz respectfully explained why his personal convictions do not permit him to serve in the military," Jehovah's Witnesses noted. Ibrahimov expressed his willingness to perform alternative civilian service. However, officials ignored his request.

Ibrahimov sent his request to perform an alternative civilian service in writing to the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription in late June 2024.

Officials summoned Ibrahimov again on 4 September 2024. They informed him that a criminal case would be opened against him.

On 18 February 2025, Ibrahimov submitted a certificate confirming his status as a Jehovah's Witness and religious minister. Officials detained him for 24 hours and subsequently required him to report to the police every week.

On 6 March, prosecutors formally charged Ibrahimov under Criminal Code Article 321.1. This states: "Evasion without lawful grounds of call-up to military service or of mobilisation, with the purpose of evading serving in the military, is punishable by imprisonment for up to two years [in peacetime]".

On 30 July, Yevlakh District Court convicted the 19-year-old under Criminal Code Article 321.1 and sentenced him to one year in a general regime prison. The one day he spent in custody in February was to be deducted from his sentence.

After the court issued its ruling, officials immediately arrested Ibrahimov in the courtroom. They took him to Ganca Prison No. 2, a high-security prison. Officials initially placed him in a cell with 40 other prisoners and only ten beds. Later he was transferred to a cell with 28 other prisoners. "The conditions are extremely challenging and raise concerns about inhumane treatment," Jehovah's Witnesses complained in August.

On 17 August, Ibrahimov's defence lawyer Yashar Musayev lodged an appeal against his conviction and sentence to Sheki Appeal Court. He was then transferred to detention in Sheki as he awaited his appeal hearing.

Jail term turned into months under restrictions

Sheki Appeal Court heard Elgiz Ibrahimov's appeal on 26 November. A panel of three judges headed by Judge Imamverdi Shukurov upheld Ibrahimov's conviction. "In the opinion of the judicial panel, the volume of evidence and the overall factual circumstances of the case provide sufficient grounds to conclude that the accused committed a crime under Criminal Code Article 321.1," the judges wrote in their decision, seen by Forum 18.

The prosecutor, who did not submit his own appeal against the 30 July lower court decision, called for the Appeal Court to dismiss Ibrahimov's appeal.

The Judges rejected Ibrahimov's argument that he should be acquitted. He denied that he had evaded call-up, pointing out that he had attended the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription in Yevlakh whenever officials summoned him.

The Judges also rejected Ibrahimov's lawyer's arguments that the Constitution guarantees the right to alternative civilian service. They also dismissed the argument that the conviction "grossly and intentionally" violates his rights under the European Convention on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

"The Azerbaijani government has acknowledged before the European Court of Human Rights that prosecuting one of Jehovah's Witnesses for conscientious objection to military service violates his human rights," the lawyer told the Court. He cited several cases, including the 2019 ECtHR decision in the case of Mushfig Mammadov and others (Application No. 14604/08).

Ibrahimov's mother, Agil, also spoke up at the appeal hearing. The court decision quotes her as testifying that "she had gone to the draft with her son from the very beginning, and her son, the Accused, had submitted an application stating that he had not evaded military service, but had requested that it be replaced by alternative civilian service due to his beliefs".

While upholding Ibrahimov's conviction, the panel of Judges ruled to change the jail term to a suspended sentence, with a probation period of six months. "The judicial panel also believes that the 3 months and 28 days that the Accused was in custody, from 18 February 2025 to 19 February 2025, as well as from 30 July 2025 to the present (26 November 2025), will deter him from committing acts that could lead to the loss of his freedom in the future."

The Judges ruled that Ibrahimov should be freed in the courtroom, adding that "the Accused shall be required not to change his permanent place of residence without informing the bodies exercising control over his behaviour, to prove through his behaviour that he has reformed, to engage in community service, to carry an electronic monitoring device and to maintain it in working condition".

Both Ibrahimov and the prosecutor have the right to take a further appeal to the Supreme Court in Baku.

Conscientious objectors banned from leaving country

An amendment to the Migration Code adopted on 27 December 2024 added a new provision in Article 9.3.5-1. This for the first time specifically imposed a "temporary" ban on leaving the country for those deemed to have evaded conscription or mobilisation "until a decision on conscription is made". This ban includes those who have refused compulsory military service on grounds of conscience.

However, many Jehovah's Witness conscientious objectors had already been banned from leaving Azerbaijan. Officials refused to issue them with travel passports because they do not have a military card.

Among these banned in recent years from leaving Azerbaijan have been:
- Vahid Abilov, sentenced in 2018 to a one-year probation period, the ECtHR found in his favour in 2021;
- Javid Abilov, summoned by the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription;
- Fuad Hasanaliyev, summoned by the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription, held briefly in a military unit against his will;
- Kanan Hasanaliyev, summoned by the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription, held briefly in a military unit against his will;
- Aslan Aliyev, summoned by the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription;
- Daniel Khutsishvili, summoned by the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription, travel restrictions eventually lifted.

Some of these tried to challenge the travel ban with the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription, without success. The State Service and Prosecutor's Offices often summon these individuals and threaten criminal prosecution. Some have to wait until the age of 30, when conscription ends, before they are allowed to travel abroad.

In April 2019, Aslan Aliyev tried to cross the border but was stopped and not allowed to leave the country. In May 2019 and February 2021, he wrote to the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription requesting that the travel restrictions be removed. The second time, he also sent letters to the State Committee and to the Ombudsperson requesting their assistance, but without any success.

When Aliyev turned 30, he applied for a passport. He was told that he needed to pay a fine for evading military service, Jehovah's Witnesses told Forum 18. Since he saw no other option, he paid the fine. Officials subsequently issued him a passport.

Many conscientious objectors are told they will be prosecuted, but prosecutors give them no further information. In 2023, the State Service for Mobilisation and Conscription summoned Yusif Shukurov. He explained both verbally and in writing that he was unable to perform military service on grounds of conscience. The Prosecutor's Office summoned him in November 2023. He again explained his position verbally and in writing. On 12 December 2024, he sent a written statement to the Prosecutor's Office. "At present, he does not know the status of his case," Jehovah's Witnesses noted. (END)

More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Azerbaijan

For background information, see Forum 18's Azerbaijan religious freedom survey

Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments

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