Azerbaijani Facebook Protester Has Appeal Rejected

Azerbaijani youth activist Cabbar Savalan

SUMQAYIT, Azerbaijan -- An Azerbaijani social-media activist had an appeal against his sentence rejected on July 27 by a court near Baku, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports.

Cabbar Savalan, 20, is a member of the opposition Azerbaijan Popular Front party (APF). He was sentenced in May to 2 1/2 years in jail for illegal possession of drugs.

On February 4, Savalan posted an appeal on Facebook calling for protests against the government. He was arrested the following day on his return home from an APF meeting.

Local and international watchdogs attributed his arrest and the case against him to his online political activity.

Amnesty International recently launched an e-mail campaign to petition Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to see that Savalan is granted an immediate and unconditional release from prison.

Read more in Azeri here