On September 14, 2021, this tweet shared a graphic video of dead bodies alleged to be bandits set ablaze in Zamfara State by Nigerian soldiers. Showing the aftermath of the said fire, a number of police officers could be spotted in this video.
Background
Zamfara State which is in north-western Nigeria recently reported bandit attacks. On September 3, 2021, residents of this state experienced an internet shutdown amid a crackdown on bandits. This is after 73 students were abducted from a government-run school in Kaya, Maradun district. To stop more attacks, a dusk to dawn curfew was imposed, travel restrictions were set and primary and secondary schools were closed. These students were later released on September 12, 2021.
Verification
Results from a reverse image search show fragments of this video first appeared on the internet on August 10, 2019. According to this tweet, this incident happened in Msamvu, Tanzania after a fuel tanker exploded while residents of this area tried to siphon petrol from it.
Further, an advanced search with keywords; “Msamvu fire” between August 7 and August 10, 2019, shows fragments of this video that were featured by Aljazeera on the same day. In this article, Aljazeera says at least 60 people were killed and 70 others injured in this tragedy.
Verdict
NO, this video does not show dead bodies of bandits allegedly set on fire in Zamfara State, Nigeria.
This story was produced by Africa Uncensored in partnership with Code for Africa with support from Deutsche Welle Akademie.
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