Additional Name(s): Razi Gumbatov
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Azerbaijan
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Shi'a
Reports of Torture: Yes
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Sentence: 6 Years' Imprisonment
Date of Detainment: July/7/2021
Date of Sentencing: May/20/2022
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: No
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment
Reason for Persecution: Online Activity Religious Association
Nature of Charges: Drug Trafficking & Illicit Drug Use
Razi Humbatov
Extra Bio Info:
Razi Humbatov is imprisoned for his religious association.
In July 2021, plainclothes officers arrested Humbatov, a member of the unregistered Muslim Unity Movement (MUM) organization, for allegedly criticizing authorities on social media.
In May 2022, the Baku Grave Crimes Court sentenced Humbatov to six years in prison for "illegally purchasing or storing with a view of selling, manufacturing, processing, transporting, transferring or selling of narcotics or psychotropic substances in large amount" (Art. 234 ACC).
Publicly Available Information:
May 20, 2022
Expedited Removal is the U.S. immigration law process that allows officers in the Department of Homeland Security, or DHS, to quickly deport noncitizens who arrive at U.S. ports of entry or cross the border without proper documents, unless the noncitizen can establish a “credible fear” of persecution or torture. Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. government has expelled most migrants and asylum seekers who try to enter the United States under a public health authority, referred to as Title 42, rather than under Expedited Removal. Beginning in mid-2021, the Biden administration resumed using Expedited Removal in some cases. It is planning to lift the Title 42 order soon and return to using Expedited Removal more broadly.
Elizabeth Cassidy, USCIRF’s Director of Research and Policy, joins us today to discuss concerns and recommendations about the treatment of asylum seekers in the Expedited Removal process and its relevance to international religious freedom.
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Iraq
Religion or Belief: Christian – Unspecified/Other
Date of Detainment: May//2022
Date of Release: May//2022
Current Status: Released
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Detainment
Reason for Persecution: Protesting Religious Freedom Conditions Religious Identity
Nature of Charges: Unknown
James Zaya
Extra Bio Info:
James Zaya was detained for protesting religious freedom conditions.
On May 11, 2022, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) authorities arrested Zaya after local villagers protested the confiscation on their land. The confiscations were likely motivated in part by the villagers’ specific religious identity. Authorities reportedly assaulted protestors. Zaya had filmed the protest and the subsequent crackdown.
Zaya was reportedly released a day after his arrest.
Related Cases: Zya Minas
Publicly Available Information:
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“Assyrian Christians arrested after attempted land grab” Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW)