On October 13, 2021, this tweet shared images claiming to show people being beaten by Indian police officers, another image of wounds allegedly from shotgun pellets, and a third image showing a funeral service.
The tweet states that this was supposedly done by Indian police in Kashmir, an area claimed by both India and Pakistan and ruled in parts by both countries. To verify the legitimacy of this information, Piga Firimbi ran a background check on these images.
Background
India’s Kashmir region has been experiencing attacks suspected to be rebel attacks on civilians. In this article by Aljazeera, Indian police say that part of these attacks are carried out by The Resistance Front, a Pakistan-based rebel group. According to the NewYork Times, these attacks largely target Hindus and Sikhs. This comes after the Indian government wiped the autonomy of the restive Kashmir region on August 5, 2019.
The attacks have been going on since the beginning of October 2021 and led to the killing of about 33 people. The earliest this month was the killing of three men in Kashmir on October 6, 2021.
Verification
A reverse image search shows that this first image of a lady being beaten by Indian police officers was shared on the internet as early as December 24, 2012.
The second image on the other hand was shared as early as August 29, 2020, from this reverse image search. According to Kashmir Watch, Indian police officers used pellet guns during a Muharram protest in the Shopian region, a location in Jammu and Kashmir. Although this happened in Kashmir, it was taken before these recent rebel attacks began.
The third image was shared on the internet on August 30, 2021 by CNN. This was a funeral of victims of a US defensive airstrike in Kabul, Afghanistan. This attack was carried out against the Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K).
Verdict
NO, these images were not taken from the recent violence experienced in Kashmir, India.
This story was produced by Africa Uncensored in partnership with Code for Africa with support from Deutsche Welle Akademie.
Add comment