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.