Aliyev Pardons French Citizen Convicted of Espionage
On September 23, 2026, Ilham Aliyev pardoned several convicted people, including Russian and Israeli citizen Kirill Mikhailov and French citizen Martin Ryan.
Tunzale Melikova1 min read
Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev signed an order on September 23, 2026, pardoning a number of convicted people. The list included Russian and Israeli citizen Kirill Mikhailov and French citizen Martin Ryan.
Under the order, Mikhailov, born in 1980, was released from the unserved portion of his sentence. He had been convicted by the Khazar District Court of Baku in a judgment dated December 12, 2024.
The document also lists Martin Richard Ryan, a French citizen born in 1988. He was convicted by the Baku Serious Crimes Court on March 16, 2026.
Ryan was sentenced to 10 years in prison in a case involving espionage in favor of France. Azerbaijani authorities accused him of collecting information on a number of issues related to weapons used by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces and the country's international relations.
The pardon also applied to Turkish citizens Mehmet Demir and Salih Ozdemir, as well as Pakistani citizen Sonya Sabir. In total, the order provides for the release from the unserved portion of their sentences of 19 people serving prison terms. Another Azerbaijani citizen was released from the remaining part of the sentence in the form of restriction of liberty.
The order entered into force on the day it was signed.
Source: lenta.ru
