The annual report, released by the State Department on Tuesday, documented significant human rights violations in Azerbaijan, ranging from unlawful and arbitrary killings, torture and degrading treatment by security officials to politically motivated reprisals against individuals outside the country, TURAN reported.

The Country Reports on Human Rights for 2021, which describes the progress of human rights in the UN member states and the countries that receive assistance from the US, revealed in Azerbaijan such violations as harsh and sometimes life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary detention; the presence of political prisoners and other abuses in Azerbaijan.

This year's report, the 46th annual edition, also highlights serious restrictions on freedom of speech and the media, including violence against journalists, criminalization of libel and slander, and harassment and imprisonment of journalists on dubious charges; serious restrictions on Internet freedom, including blocking of websites; de facto prohibition on the right to peaceful assembly and significant interference with freedom of association; and restrictions on freedom of movement.

Other violations include severe restrictions on political participation; systemic government corruption; police brutality against persons based on sexual orientation; significant restrictions on workers' freedom of association; and the existence of the worst forms of child labor.

The report on Azerbaijan states that "the government has failed to prosecute and punish the majority of officials who have committed human rights violations and acts of corruption; impunity remained a problem.