Azerbaijan has filed a lawsuit against CNN in a US federal court over a June 5, 2026 article that alleged Israeli military and intelligence operations had been conducted from Azerbaijani territory during the conflict with Iran.

The article alleged that Israeli special forces were operating from several locations in southern Azerbaijan near the Iranian border, including carrying out intelligence-gathering and drone operations. It also claimed that Israel had placed listening devices and other intelligence equipment in Azerbaijan ahead of subsequent operations against Iran.

Azerbaijan had denied the claims before the article was published. According to the Azerbaijani side, CNN was informed that Baku does not permit its territory to be used by any third country for military or intelligence operations against Iran or another state. Baku stated that the published report nevertheless relied on anonymous sources and did not adequately reflect Azerbaijan’s position.

After the article was published, Azerbaijan repeatedly called on CNN to retract the allegations and issue corrections. Follow-up letters were sent to the network on June 6 and 23 and July 2, while Azerbaijani officials also raised the issue publicly. CNN promised it would review the requests but did not retract the claims during the following weeks. Azerbaijan therefore filed the lawsuit on August 17 in the US District Court for the District of Delaware, where CNN is incorporated.

The lawsuit marks a new stage in the dispute over CNN’s reporting, with Azerbaijan seeking the retraction of claims it describes as false and damaging to the country’s reputation.