Footage from Nepal youth protests falsely linked to Mexican cartel violence
- Published on February 25, 2026 at 07:49
- 3 min read
- By AFP Mexico
- Translation and adaptation Chayanit ITTHIPONGMAETEE, AFP Thailand
After Mexican security forces killed drug cartel leader Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera in the state of Jalisco on February 22, 2026, a video of vehicles engulfed in flames circulated in social media posts falsely claiming it depicts "chaotic scenes" of reprisal from gang members. However, AFP found the footage was recorded months earlier in Nepal during youth-led anti-corruption protests that toppled the government.
"Chaotic scene caused by a drug cartel gang in Mexico," reads Thai text superimposed on a Facebook post published February 23.
The caption says the Mexican army killed Oseguera, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), in an operation that triggered riots and road blockades across more than 20 Mexican states.
The same video and claim also circulated in other languages, such as Burmese, Hindi, Spanish and English.
According to Mexican authorities, the 59-year-old leader was wounded during an operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco aimed at capturing him (archived link). He later died during an air transfer to Mexico City, the army reported.
Oseguara had been considered one of the last major gang leaders operating in the violent mould of imprisoned Sinaloa cartel figures Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman and Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada.
His death sparked retaliatory violence in at least 20 of Mexico's 32 states, with road blockades and vehicles and businesses set ablaze (archived link).
Security Secretary Omar Garcia Harfuch said at least 25 National Guard members and one prison guard were killed, while 30 suspected CJNG members died during the operation (archived link).
However, the circulating video does not show unrest in Mexico -- it was taken months earlier during demonstrations in Nepal.
Nepal protest footage
A reverse image search on Google using the video's keyframes found a matching video in a Facebook post published on September 10, 2025 (archived link).
The video shows a scene filmed near the Singha Durbar -- Nepal's main government administrative complex in Kathmandu -- and includes hashtags such as #GenZ, referencing the youth-led anti-corruption protests that toppled the government in September 2025 (archived link).
Protests began on September 8, initially sparked by a temporary ban on social media but fuelled by anger at corruption and long-standing economic woes (archived link).
During the violence, dozens of vehicles, public buildings and the residences of political leaders were burned, with at least 76 deaths reported. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli subsequently resigned (archived links here and here).
A close inspection of the footage reveals Nepalese letters on a vehicle's license plate and the country's flag in the background (archived link).
A photo taken September 10 by AFP photographer Prabin Ranabhat shows a water truck in front of the Singha Durbar building. A parking lot with burned vehicles is visible in the upper-right corner of the image.
A comparison between a zoomed-in section of the AFP photo and the circulating video found identical wreckage.
AFP further geolocated the footage to a parking lot near Singha Durbar, identifying matching elements such as a tree on an orange structure and a narrow, curved path leading to the main road.
Copyright © AFP 2017-2026. Any commercial use of this content requires a subscription. Click here to find out more.
Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.
Contact us
