BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 14.
Coordinated troll attacks against Azerbaijan from Iran and Türkiye
have intensified.
This was reflected in a statement released by the Media and
Broadcasting Council.
According to the statement, in recent days, there has been a
clear trend of civic activists, politicians, and even officials
operating abroad actively participating in targeted information
campaigns against Azerbaijan.
The statement noted that such activities, driven by political
and ideological motives and characterized by the manipulation of
public opinion and interference in the country's internal affairs,
represent an unacceptable instance of abusing the information space
and attempting to undermine public trust.
“The mass spread of posts featuring identical spelling errors
and writing styles, the repetitive ‘copy-pasting’ of similar
comments, and the circulation of edited photos and videos unrelated
to our country constitute primitive and easily identifiable methods
of coordinated troll attacks.
The fact that over 400 posts were shared in a short period using
an Azerbaijani-language hashtag, despite the posters being
foreign-language speakers, combined with instances where the
content consisted solely of the hashtag or involved the repeated
dissemination of the same material from a single account, clearly
demonstrates the manipulative nature of these campaigns and
provokes justified public discontent and outrage toward their
organizers and participants.
Making such posts via various anonymous accounts, as well as
inciting citizens to disturb public order through negative comments
and reactions, is entirely contrary to the requirements of both the
legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan and international law,
and entails legal liability.
We view the intensification of targeted information attacks
originating from Iran and Türkiye, particularly via the Telegram,
X, and TikTok platforms, as incompatible with the principles of
safeguarding information security, mutual respect in interstate
relations, and international cooperation against disinformation,
and we strongly condemn them.
The fact that baseless and biased material regarding Azerbaijan,
as well as threats, intimidation, and insults directed at the
Azerbaijani state and its people, has become commonplace in the
media and social media sectors of those countries, coupled with the
failure of the relevant authorities to take any action in this
regard, is causing concern and serious discontent among our
public.
The Media and Broadcasting Council of Azerbaijan once again
calls upon citizens, media entities, and social media users to
remain vigilant against such manipulative campaigns, to refrain
from participating in the dissemination of false information, and
to demonstrate a responsible and principled stance against attempts
to damage our country's reputation," the statement added.
