This video has circulated since 2021 in reports about Taliban after US Afghan exit

This article is more than one year old.
Published on July 1, 2022 at 06:29
3 min read
By Wasi MIRZA, AFP Pakistan

A video of people prostrating has been viewed more than a thousand times in social media posts that claim it shows crowds mourning following an earthquake that struck eastern Afghanistan in June 2022. However, the claim is false; the video has circulated since September 2021 in reports about the Taliban celebrating after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The claim was shared here on Facebook on June 23, 2022.

The Persian-language caption translates to English as: "A shocking film from Afghanistan. The people of Paktika are all prostrating and crying because of the intensity of grief and the number of people killed.

"The death toll from the quake has risen to 1,500, but local officials estimate up to 3,000."

The claim was shared alongside a 45-second video that shows a group of people prostrating. It has been viewed more than 1,200 times.

Screenshot of the misleading Facebook post, taken on June 30, 2022.

The claim began to circulate after a 5.9-magnitude earthquake devastated Afghanistan's remote Paktika province on June 21, 2022, leaving at least 1,000 people dead and 1,500 injured, AFP reported.

The identical video was shared with a similar claim on Facebook, Twitter and Tiktok.

However, the claim is false.

A reverse image search of the video's keyframes on Google found a video with matching scenes published on YouTube by Pakistan's 24 News HD on September 1, 2021.

The clip is titled: "Video Viral | Talban (sic) Thanking God Almighty & Raising New Flag After Victory In Afghanistan".

Scenes corresponding to the video in the false posts can be seen from the 38-second mark.

Below is a screenshot comparison of scenes from the footage in the false posts (left) with the one from 24 News HD (right):

Screenshot comparing scenes from the footage in false posts (left) with the one from 24 News HD (right).

Separate reverse image searches found the clips containing the identical scene posted on Twitter here and here on the same day.

"In #logar, the #Taliban and the general #public celebrated the victory with a prostration of thanks Happiness could not be controlled emotionally, everyone was seen crying, sighs could be heard. #Afghanistan ," one tweet reads.

Logar is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan located in the eastern section of the country.

A keyword search for Taliban celebrations in the province found this video published on Twitter on August 31, 2021, by Independent Persian, a Persian-language partner publication of the British daily The Independent.

The Persian-language caption translates to English as: "Pul-i-Alam, the capital of Logar province in eastern Afghanistan, is one of the cities where insurgents and Taliban supporters gathered in the central square.

"The US withdrawal ceremony was also attended by Taliban leaders at the National Radio and Television Hall in Kabul."

Below is a screenshot comparison of the video shared in the false posts (left) and the video published by Independent Persian (right) with similar features marked out by AFP:

Screenshot comparison of the video shared in the misleading posts (left) and the video published by The Independent Persian (right).

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