Azerbaijan frees human rights advocate from jail

Azeri human rights activist and lawyer Intigam Aliyev was freed from jail on Monday, his lawyer said. Azerbaijan pardoned 148 prisoners including journalists, rights activists and political opponents this month in an apparent move to deflect Western criticism of the ex-Soviet republic's human rights record. Analysts say President Ilham Aliyev has included some political prisoners in amnesties in recent years to avoid complaints over crackdowns on free speech in Azerbaijan, a major oil and natura