Fact Check: Video showing people sleeping in open is not from earthquake hit Morocco

On September 8, a 4.6 magnitude earthquake hit Morocco killing nearly 3,000 people and leaving many without shelter. Reportedly, several people who are homeless or are scared of aftershocks were forced to sleep in the open sky.

A video showing a huge number of people sleeping in the open is doing rounds on social media, with users claiming that the video is from Morocco.

An X user shared the video with the caption, “Subhanallah this is really touching. Ta Allah! Protect the people of Morocco and forgive the dead ones. Ameen.”

Another X user also shared the video claiming the same. (Click here to see the post.)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the video is from the 2023 global Catholic youth festival in Lisbon, Portugal.

On performing a reverse image search on a keyframe of the video, we found it uploaded on the YouTube channel Solo Catecumenos on August 6, 2023, which confirms it predates the Morocco earthquake that occurred on September 8.

The English translation of the Spanish caption stated that ‘The youth spent the night on the street on World Youth Day (JMJ2023), an annual Catholic festival held in Lisbon, Portugal’.

We also found the same video posted by several Facebook users clarifying that it shows 1.5 million young people spent the night in Lisbon on World Youth Day (JMJ2023). (Click here and here to see the posts.)

We also found a report by France 24, which said 1.5 people had flooded Lisbon on August 5 to celebrate World Youth Day (WYD), which was presided over by Pope Francis. It also said many attendees had arrived with backpacks and sleeping bags to spend the night.

Hence, we conclude that the claim that the video is from Morocco is false. The video is actually from a global Catholic youth festival in Lisbon, Portugal.