Baku: Videos allegedly showing the movement of military equipment belonging to the Azerbaijan Army were circulated on foreign segments of social networks on March 17, 2025, claiming that military operations were being conducted on the state border of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the State Security Service’s Press Service issued a statement regarding the matter, APA reports.
According to Azeri-Press News Agency, a criminal case has been initiated by the State Security Service of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Preliminary investigations have determined that the circulated video footage dates back to February 27, 2025. It was established that Samad Bahman Rustamov, a citizen of the Republic of Azerbaijan born in 2007, recorded a video of the movement of military equipment belonging to the Azerbaijan Armed Forces in the Gadabay district on February 27, 2025. This footage was posted on his TikTok account on March 15, 2025, despite the legal prohibition on its dissemination.
The video was subsequently combined with footage from different periods and used as a source for misleading reports on social networks. As a result of urgent measures, Samad Rustamov was detained and taken into investigation, with the mobile phone used to record the footage seized as material evidence.
The State Security Service (SSS) reiterates that recording and sharing videos related to the Azerbaijani Army’s military units, their locations, movements, combat and mobilization readiness, weapons, and military equipment on online platforms, including social media, constitutes a criminal offense. Legal measures will be taken against individuals involved in such actions in accordance with the law.