Activist Deported From Azerbaijan, Warned About Family

A U.S. citizen of Azerbaijani origin, Said Nuri, has been deported from Azerbaijan after what he called days of intimidation and harassment.

Nuri wrote on Twitter on September 12 that he was ejected from his native country and told he could never return.

He said that after he arrived in Tbilisi, Georgia, from Baku, he received an anonymous email warning him not to forget that his relatives remain in Azerbaijan.

Earlier this week, a sexually explicit video showing Nuri and his girlfriend circulated on the Internet.

On September 4, Azerbaijani officials barred Nuri from leaving the country and questioned him in connection with an undisclosed investigation.

A former deputy chief of the pro-opposition youth group Yeni Fikir (New Opinion), Nuri left Azerbaijan several years ago after a treason investigation was launched against his organization.