Video shows explosion in Tianjin in 2015, not during 'coup in Beijing' in 2022

This article is more than one year old.
Published on September 30, 2022 at 10:36
3 min read
By AFP Hong Kong

A video has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times on social media posts that claim it shows a big explosion in China's capital Beijing in September 2022 during a supposed attempt to topple the country's president, Xi Jinping. The claim, however, is false. The video has circulated since 2015 in news reports about a deadly explosion at a chemical warehouse in the northeastern city of Tianjin. There have been no credible reports about a coup against the Chinese leader.

The 51-second video, which has more than 110,000 views, was shared on Twitter here on September 25.

Its caption reads: "Footage of big explosions coming from #Beijing during the china coup against Xi Jinping. China is in turmoil!

"Xi Jinping is missing! Is this a coup? Has he been assassinated and I uncover a military mystery no one is talking about. #chinacoup #chinesecoup #china #xijingping."

The 51-second video shows a large explosion in the distance with the sound of the blast coming around six seconds later.

A man can be heard saying in Mandarin, "Where did this explosion take place? Even the sky is illuminated.

"The glass has been shattered. The blast was extremely powerful."

Screenshot of the misleading tweet, captured on September 29, 2022

Slightly shorter versions of the same video were shared elsewhere on Twitter here, where it was viewed more than 127,000 times, and on YouTube here.

It circulated as social media posts spread unfounded rumours that there had been a coup against Xi.

The swiftly-debunked rumours, reported on here by the UK-based Guardian newspaper and here by India's The Economic Times newspaper, spread ahead of a key meeting of China's ruling Communist Party.

State media reported that the 20th Party Congress will be held on October 16, with Xi expected to be reinstated as president for an unprecedented third term at the landmark meeting.

There have been no credible reports about Xi being overthrown, and US broadcaster CNN reported here on September 29 that the Chinese leader had made his first public appearance in a fortnight -- quashing speculation about a "coup".

The video circulating in the posts is also old -- it has been shared since 2015 in reports of an explosion at a chemical warehouse in the port city of Tianjin, more than 100 kilometres (70 miles) southeast of Beijing.

2015 chemical warehouse explosion

A combination of reverse image and keyword searches on Baidu found a longer version of the video published in a news report by Sina News on August 13, 2015.

The video's simplified-Chinese title reads: "Residents in Tianjin exclaimed that the sky lit up and the building shook during the explosion."

Below is a screenshot comparison of the video in the misleading post (left) and the Sina news report (right):

A screenshot comparison of the video in the misleading post (left) and the Sina news report (right).

The same footage was also included in reports by Taiwanese newspaper Apple Daily and local broadcaster SMG Shanghai TV in August 2015.

Tianjin authorities reported 165 dead after several large explosions rocked a chemical warehouse in Tianjin on August 12, 2015, AFP reported at the time.

The blast raised fears about increased toxic pollution in the city and the adequacy of training given to firefighters, as nearly 100 firefighters were killed.

AFP previously also debunked a claim that a similar video of the explosion shows a blast in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu in April 2020.

Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.

E-mail