Fact Check: Pahalgam terror attack—China performs military drills in Himalayas amid India-Pakistan tensions? No, find the facts here
A video has been circulating on social media, claiming to show Chinese military drills in the Himalayas over tensions building between India and Pakistan.
By Md Mahfooz Alam
Claim:The video shows Chinese military drills in the Himalayas in response to the recent military escalation between India and Pakistan.
Fact:The claim is misleading. The video predates the Pahalgam terror attack, which took place on April 22.
Hyderabad: In the wake of rising tensions between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, social media, particularly in Pakistan, is abuzz with speculation and nationalist rhetoric. Amid the growing unrest, China has officially called for restraint and urged both nations to de-escalate the situation, but it continues to be widely viewed as a tacit ally of Pakistan.
In this context, a video purportedly showing military drills has been circulating on social media. One X user shared the video with the caption, “Exclusive: As India-Pakistan tensions reach a boiling point, China flexes its muscle with massive military drills in the shadow of the Himalayas. (sic)” (Archive)
Another X handle, South Asia Index, shared the video with the caption, “China sends bold message, with massive military drills in the terrain of the Himalayas, amid India-Pakistan tensions.” (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is misleading, as the video predates the flare-up between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack of April 22.
Upon reviewing the comments on the post, we found several users claiming that the video is old (links here and here).
We also came across a screengrab of the video dated April 13, 2025, posted by a Chinese account, Zhao DaShuai, which was shared by another X account, India Strike YT, on May 3, 2025.
Going by the date on the screengrab, the India Strike YT post claimed that the video was originally shared nearly 10 days before the Pahalgam terrorist attack. The post said that, using the viral video as proof, Pakistani and Chinese media are claiming that China is conducting military drills in the Himalayan ranges amidst India-Pakistan tensions.’ However, this claim is false.
Taking this cue, we searched for the X account Zhao DaShuai and found the video posted on April 13, 2025, with the caption, “Artillery doctrine right, is voluminous precision strike.” The account is currently withheld in India.
We also found the video published on the Chinese news website Hubei Daily on April 12, reporting on a combat shooting assessment. Another Chinese outlet, Xinhua News, published the same video on April 15, stating that a certain unit of the Chinese Army had recently conducted a multi-subject, multi-ammunition and multi-weapon combat shooting assessment. The purpose of the exercise, according to the report, was to enhance the unit’s ability to carry out a variety of combat tasks in real-world conditions.
NewsMeter could not independently verify the location of the video. However, we found that the video predates the Pahalgam terror attack, which took place on April 22. Therefore, the claim that the video shows Chinese military drills in response to the escalation between India and Pakistan is misleading.
