“Reports circulated by a number of foreign media outlets mentioning Azerbaijan in connection with the investigation involving former head of Germany’s Federal Intelligence Service (BND) August Hanning are disinformation and are regarded as part of an intensified smear campaign against Azerbaijan in recent times,” APA reports, citing a statement by the Media and Broadcasting Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The statement said it is a matter of serious concern that unfounded allegations first published by Germany’s Der Spiegel and subsequently circulated by Reuters, AFP, France 24, The Times, The Telegraph and other international media outlets, linking Azerbaijan to the investigation in question, have been presented to a broad audience as fact.
It added that circulating such materials without reference to an official source is considered unacceptable information manipulation.
“The malicious intention of the forces behind this disinformation operation is to damage Azerbaijan-Germany relations, which have developed further in recent times.
The Media and Broadcasting Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan strongly condemns such disinformation campaigns aimed at presenting Azerbaijan in an unfounded negative context in the international information space and calls on international media organizations to strictly adhere to the fundamental principles of professional journalism, including accuracy, objectivity, reliance on reliable sources and verification of information, and not to allow the dissemination of false information or the manipulation of public opinion,” the statement said.
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