Paris accused on Monday November 13 actors linked to Azerbaijan of having led a campaign of information manipulation aimed at damaging France’s reputation in its ability to host the 2024 Olympic Games. According to a report from Viginum , the organization fighting against foreign digital interference, the investigations began on July 26 when “ several visuals calling for a boycott of the Olympic Games-24 » massively shared on X (formerly Twitter), were detected. The investigation was carried out in a context of diplomatic tensions between Paris and Baku. In recent months, France has been involved in mediation between Azerbaijan and Armenia, two former Soviet republics in conflict for thirty years. France has also shown its support for Armenia which fears a violation of its territorial integrity by Azerbaijan, a position which has earned it harsh criticism from Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev. “ Featuring images of riots or the city of Paris, these publications also included the Olympic logo, three official JOP-24 X accounts and two hashtags #PARIS2024 and #BOYCOTTPARIS2024 on each content. », Details Viginum in his report. On July 26 and 27, more than 1,600 publications accompanied by these visuals or hashtags were published on the platform.
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