“One of the most persistent violences in these conversations is the assumption of choice. This situation is often presented as if it were the result of a decision we, as Venezuelans, made – or failed to make correctly – as if we had endless options.” shado-mag.com/articles/opi...

Brutal Police Raid on LGBT-friendly Venue in Azerbaijan www.hrw.org/news/2026/01... via @hrw.org

After taking to the streets, people in Iran have now been disconnected from the rest of the world for more than five days. That’s +120 hours in the dark! Alongside +19 orgs, we demand that authorities immediately restore internet access and uphold rights. www.accessnow.org/press-releas...

This was such a delight to edit and work on. Our latest story for @globalvoices.org "Queer cinema in Azerbaijan tells stories of visibility and survival" globalvoices.org/2025/12/04/q... Kudos to the author for putting this piece together.

With a slight delay. My latest on Istanbul mayor's indictment for @globalvoices.org "The sentence demanded in the case of jailed Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu is 2,430 years" globalvoices.org/2025/12/03/t...

My latest: “Ultimately, as long as the same government that calls for dialogue also decides who can speak, gestures of openness should be viewed with cautious skepticism.” www.balcanicaucaso.org/cp_article/a...

Azerbaijan Escalates Crackdown on Exiled Critics www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has named Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Georgian Dream founder Bidzina Ivanishvili as ‘press freedom predators’ for their roles in repressing press freedom in their countries. oc-media.org/ivanishvili-...

Is Turkey a state of law? Critics highlight long-standing patterns of politicization and lack of institutional insulation from executive power - my latest for @globalvoices.org globalvoices.org/2025/11/02/i...

Wrote a little something about what happened to the “éminence grise” for @balcanicaucaso.org #Azerbaijan: when the mighty fall out of favor www.balcanicaucaso.org/eng/Areas/Az...

Protests in Georgia amid municipal elections met with arrests, heavy police intervention globalvoices.org/2025/10/11/pro… for @globalvoices.org with photos by @ocmedia.bsky.social’s @mariamnikuradze.bsky.social 🙏🏼

#Turkey 🇹🇷 The broadcast regulator has recently gone after streaming platforms, issuing fines for films it claims "promote homosexuality" and "disregard family values". @arzugeybulla.bsky.social reports for @globalvoices.org: buff.ly/0WGOR00

What happens when you lock up independent journalists behind bars on bogus charges? Well, they continue reporting even from behind bars. My latest for @balcanicaucaso.org on corruption, rights violations and other shenanigans inside Azerbaijani prisons www.balcanicaucaso.org/eng/Areas/Az...

It's been a busy month for the authorities in #Azerbaijan, as they continue to keep things "in order" and "contained." Read more in this month's newsletter from Free Voices Collective freevoicescollective.org/families-imp...

Watch out! Authorities in Turkey are on the lookout for obscenity globalvoices.org/2025/09/24/w... latest for @globalvoices.org

The CHP's leadership has dismissed the ruling as null and void, even as it faces another court hearing, scheduled for September 15, which revolves around a “mutlak butlan” - explainer globalvoices.org/2025/09/14/e...

With all that is happening in Turkey this is already an old story but nevertheless thought I share anyway: globalvoices.org/2025/09/07/w...

12th person to face arrest as part of the so called investigation into independent Meydan Tv case. On August 28 authorities arrested photo journalist Ahmad Mukhtar. He is facing the same charges as the rest of journalists arrested as part of the case.

An Azerbaijani student is facing deportation in Turkey after participating in protests against rising university cafeteria prices. medyascope.tv/2025/08/25/n...

“Flood them with fans”: @rsf.org launches solidarity campaign together with exiled Azerbaijani organizations for imprisoned Azerbaijani journalist Sevinj Vagifgizi and other reporters rsf.org/en/flood-the...

My latest: “This is the paradox of White House-brokered peace: leaders shake hands abroad, while at home, those who practice reconciliation are criminalized.” For @balcanicaucaso.org www.balcanicaucaso.org/eng/Areas/Az...

“Governments, journalists, academics, and institutions who pretend they don’t see the rot. Or worse, who see it and stay silent because there's gas, trade, and diplomatic optics at stake.” Read @arzugeybulla.bsky.social's statement from the @pace.coe.int Summer Session in full here: bit.ly/44SzPBI

My latest for @globalvoices.org On paper, the deal reads like a straightforward real estate transaction globalvoices.org/2025/08/15/t...

FMA condemns the killing last night of five Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza by the Israeli military and stands in solidarity with our Palestinian colleagues, at least 178 of whom have been killed by Israel since the conflict began. Journalists are #NotATarget.

An entire news crew working for Al Jazeera was killed by Israel as they sought to bring the world firsthand reporting from #Gaza. Among them was prominent journalist Anas Al-Sharif, who had been previously smeared and threatened by the IDF. #NotATarget Full statement: cpj.org/2025/08/isra...

Trump Should Raise Rights Issues with Azerbaijan Leader www.hrw.org/news/2025/08... my latest dispatc for @hrw.org

At its recent launch, Next Sosyal was touted as the country's first “domestic social media application,” offering users a new generation of social media free from ads and harassment. But how “local and national” was it?! I break it down for @globalvoices.org #Turkey globalvoices.org/2025/08/01/t...

Türkiye: Turkmen Risking Deportation Reported Missing www.hrw.org/news/2025/07...

Russia: Internet Blocking, Disruptions and Increasing Isolation www.hrw.org/news/2025/07... @hrw.org latest report just in

Embracing propaganda narrative and taking it to YouTube - quick update on Google TAG quarterly reports investigating coordinated influence operations linked to Azerbaijan. www.az-netwatch.org/news/on-a-mi...

Going through the Google TAG Q2 report. Not surprised to see that between April and June 2025, hundreds of YouTube channels were terminated as part of an investigation into coordinated influence operations linked to #Azerbaijan. blog.google/threat-analy...

#Turkey 🇹🇷 Earlier this month, Turkey became the first country to censor the “X” AI chatbot Grok. @arzugeybulla.bsky.social‬ reports on the block for @globalvoices.org‬, putting it in the broader context of Turkey's history of online censorship.

On Azerbaijan's economic strategy (or lack thereof): "If a country’s president answers questions about economic development with a 12-second response, and one that’s far from concrete, it reveals a lack of serious thought about the nation’s economic future." kharcenter.com/en/expert-co...

Some random thoughts on this Monday morning substack.com/@arzugeybull...

When investigative journalist Sevinc Vagifgizi asked her family to bring her a simple fan to help her cope with the suffocating heat of her prison cell, she likely did not expect that her right to breathe freely would become a form of leverage for prison authorities. globalvoices.org/2025/07/27/h...

“My identity is a wave.” My latest for @globalvoices a personal essay in which I write about life in exile and identity. globalvoices.org/2025/07/26/m...

The latest conviction of Istanbul’s mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu, marks a critical escalation in Turkey's ongoing erosion of judicial independence and democratic norms. My latest piece for @globalvoices.org globalvoices.org/2025/07/26/t...

Thank you @humanrightshouse.bsky.social for sharing my statement I delivered at the @pace.coe.int The full text of the statement is available on my Substack arzugeybulla.substack.com/p/hearing-at...

Global Voices asked Grok how it was handling the recent court decision, to which it responded, “I'm Grok, created by xAI. The Turkish court's decision to block access to some of my content is a bummer, but I'm not sweating it too much.” globalvoices.org/2025/07/14/t... for @globalvoices.org

When it's hard to keep track of all the ongoing arrests, detentions, and other Turkey-related internal developments, @turkeyrecap.bsky.social comes to the rescue. Their most recent letter is in! C-H-Pincer Movement www.turkeyrecap.com/p/c-h-pincer...

"Barım’s case remains widely viewed as a political trial designed to silence government criticism in Turkey’s entertainment industry amid a widening crackdown on the nation’s main opposition party." Latest on Ayse Barim's case on @turkeyrecap.bsky.social www.patreon.com/posts/ayse-b...

On June 26, I spoke at a hearing on the situation of journalists and human rights defenders in Azerbaijan at PACE. Here is my full statement. open.substack.com/pub/arzugeyb...

Since this article was published, three more mayors from the opposition CHP have been arrested as part of an investigation into alleged corruption. Separately, prominent investigative journalist Timur Soykan was detained over his tweets. globalvoices.org/2025/07/03/t...

The sentencing of Bahruz Samadov and the rise of post-war paranoia in Azerbaijan globalvoices.org/2025/07/05/t... my latest for @globalvoices.org

Another round of escalation in relations between Azerbaijan and Russia globalvoices.org/2025/07/04/a... With the most recent updates for @globalvoices.org

#Azerbaijan Convicts Critics in Relentless Crackdown My latest dispatch for @hrw.org www.hrw.org/news/2025/07...

Turkey's shifting sands: opposition in crisis, journalists silenced, and rights under siege globalvoices.org/2025/07/03/t... for @globalvoices.org

In the face of international criticism, #Azerbaijan sentences the @abzasmedia.bsky.social team globalvoices.org/2025/06/30/i... for @globalvoices.org On June 30, Ulvi Hasanli's wife said that her husband was tortured &placed in solitary confinement for protesting his transfer to the Umbaki prison

My latest piece for @globalvoices.org: Beyond the scale: Unpacking Turkey's obesity challenge amidst economic strain and food safety fears globalvoices.org/2025/06/27/b...

On June 23, the court in Baku sentenced scholar, Bahruz Samadov, to 15 years on bogus treason charges.