Azerbaijan has placed Turkish columnist Celal Ciftci on an international wanted list after prosecutors opened a criminal case alleging calls for the violent seizure of power and the distribution of religious-extremist material.
The Prosecutor General’s Office said on Oct. 16 that Ciftci, a Turkish citizen born in 1975 and a columnist for the newspaper Şanlıurfa Olay, had been charged and ordered held in absentia. The allegations were reported by Report and APA, citing the office.
Prosecutors alleged that social-media posts repeatedly called for a coup and the violent alteration of Azerbaijan’s constitutional order, while also inciting religious hostility. Investigators said some of the material had been created with artificial intelligence.
The case was opened under Articles 281.2, 283.2.1 and 167-3.1 of Azerbaijan’s Criminal Code. The provisions cover repeated public calls directed against the state, incitement of religious hatred involving violence, and the preparation, possession or distribution of material that calls for or seeks to justify religious-extremist activity.
The investigation has been assigned to the Prosecutor General’s Office’s Investigation Department. Azerbaijani authorities said they were sending requests for international legal assistance to Turkish agencies to conduct investigative actions involving Ciftci and other people.
The official statement did not say that Ciftci had been detained. The accusations reflect the prosecution’s account, and no response from the columnist was included in the published reports.
No court has ruled on the allegations. The case remains under investigation.