Fact Check: Video of Venezuela protests passed off as stir in France
Several social media users shared a video of water cannons and tear gas being used on protests with hashtag #IndiaWillBackFrance.
By Vamsi Krishna Pothuru Published on 5 Nov 2020 4:12 AM GMT
Hyderabad: Several social media users shared a video of water cannons and tear gas being used on protests with hashtag #IndiaWillBackFrance.
The caption of the video reads: "#TerroristAttacks #IndiaWillBackFrance. If you are bringing Rafale from France, also bring 2- 4 of these vehicles."
This ambiguous caption of the video and the attached hashtags give the impression that this video is from France.
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This video with a similar caption became viral on Facebook also.
Fact check:
Claims made on social media about this video are FALSE. This video is from the 2017 anti-government protests in Venezuela and not related to France.
A reverse image search of one of the keyframes of the video on Yandex resulted in the same video on YouTube dated back to 16 May 2017. The video titled "Protestors Take On A Water Cannon - Venezuela Riots in 2017." The description of the video reads: "Several protestors attempt to hold their ground against truck-mounted water cannon."
For more authentic sources, Newsmeter did a keyword search and found the same video taken from another angle published by AFP News Agency on 10 May 2017. The video was titled `Clashes erupt in Caracas'. Caracas is the capital of Venezuela.
Newsmeter also found a report by Hurriyet, a Turkish newspaper, which featured the same video, published on 12 May 2017. The caption of the video reads: "There scenes are from anti-government protests in Venezuela. Demonstrations in Venezuela began in early April, with hundreds of people protesting the government led by President Nicolas Maduro."
We also found a report by ntv.ru, a Russian media house, featuring the same video, published on 16 May 2017. The video was captioned `Dispersal of protests in Venezuela'.
In conclusion, it is evident from media reports that this video is not related to France. It is a 2017 video of Venezuela protests. Therefore claim made on social media is FALSE.
