Azernews.Az

By Akbar Mammadov

Azerbaijan’s State Security Service (SSS) has warned citizens against Armenian provocation and espionage attempts in social media.

In a press release published on its website on September 22, the State Security Service said that with the intensification of military provocations on the line of contact, Armenia uses fake Azerbaijani names and the Azerbaijani language on social networking platforms to create tension and panic among the population in the frontline areas and to collect information about the activities, operational intentions, movements of military units of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces.

“In connection with the above-mentioned cases, the State Security Service urges the Azerbaijani citizens to be vigilant, not to follow the provocations of the adversary, not to disseminate information that constitutes a military secret that could harm the combat capability of our army and the security of the local population,” the SSS said.

The SSS recommended citizens not to respond to materials sent by anonymous profiles, social networking chats and messengers, and not to share such content with acquaintances and relatives.

The agency urged citizens to refer only to the information of the official state bodies of our country regarding the situation on the front.

The citizens were recommended to address the State Security Service over any intelligence-provocative appeals addressed to them under fake names and via various communication channels.

Armenia has stepped up its military provocation recently, staging sabotage both on the border and on the line of contact.

On July 12, Armenian forces shelled Azerbaijan's positions in Tovuz, Azerbaijan's strategically-important district. The attack killed 12 Azerbaijani servicemen, including an army general, as well as a 76-year-old civilian.

Azerbaijan and Armenia are locked in a conflict over Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh breakaway region, which along with seven adjacent regions was occupied by Armenian forces in a war in the early 1990s. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and around one million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.

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Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

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