Yılmaz Mehralibeyli, an Azerbaijani cultural activist and member of the Bar Association of the Eastern Province of Azerbaijan, was arrested by security forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the city of Julfa on Monday morning, July 21.

According to the Azerbaijani Political Prisoners’ Defense Association (ADAP), security officers called Yılmaz’s mother, introducing themselves as a “health worker” and calling her to come to the Shujakendi village health center to resolve her medical issue. They also asked the mother to bring her son with her. As soon as the mother and son entered the health center, plainclothes officers arrested Yılmaz Mehralibeyli.

Following the arrest, security forces raided the lawyer’s home and conducted an extensive search, confiscating his laptop, books, and manuscripts.

Yılmaz Mehralibeyli graduated from the Marand Peyamnoor Law School. He was previously subjected to pressure from the Tabriz Intelligence Department and deprived of his legal practice for defending the national rights of Azerbaijanis and supporting political prisoners in this region.