Claim: An X account shared a video with the caption “Breaking: Fano/Amhara forces captured 100+ ENDF Oromo soldiers after several days of fighting.”

Verdict: False.

On June 5, 2024, an X account named Amhara News Service, with over 14,200 followers, shared a video with the caption “Breaking; Fano/Amhara forces captured 100+ ENDF Oromo soldiers after several days of fighting.” The post was retweeted over 190 times and received more than 31,000 views. The tweet garnered over 170 reposts, over 478 likes, and more than 33,000 views by the time this article was published.

However, the footage is actually from the “Northern Ethiopia war” (the war in Tigray ), which erupted on November 3, 2020, between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). The war ended on November 2, 2022, when a peace agreement, commonly called the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (CoHA) was signed by both parties in Pretoria, South Africa.

MFC examined the video using reverse image search tools. However, due to the low quality of the video, finding its source through reverse image search proved difficult.

To further investigate, we searched YouTube using the Amharic keyword “የተማረኩ” (Captured). This led us to a video clip containing the same footage as the one shared on X.

The video was shared on a YouTube channel named Marda Times on Sep 25, 2022. 

Based on this information, the post shared by the X account claiming that the video shows 100+ ENDF (Ethiopian National Defense Force) soldiers captured by Fano is false.

Context

The conflict in the Amhara region, which began in April 2023, is part of a broader pattern of instability and violence in Ethiopia. The conflict was triggered by the Ethiopian military’s raid on the Amhara region to disarm regional forces and the Fano militiamen. This action sparked resistance and clashes with the Fano militiamen, who claimed to capture towns in the region forcing the federal government to take further military action. The situation remains tense, leading to death of civilians, causing significant damage to properties, and displacing hundreds of thousands of people. This post, which falsely claims to show footage of a conflict in the Amhara region, is part of a larger trend of misinformation and disinformation circulating online in relation to the ongoing conflict in Ethiopia.

The post Shared Video Misrepresents the Conflict in the Amhara Region appeared first on MultiFactCheck.

Claim: An X account claimed that “members of the 51st Regiment were destroyed in today’s battle and that the pictured individuals were captured during an operation in Gondar.”

Verdict: False. The image is outdated and unrelated to the current conflict in Amhara.

An X account named “የአማራ ፋኖ ጠቅላይ እዝ Official Page!” with over 21,000 followers shared an image with an Amharic caption in which a soldier appears to narrate that they could not anymore fight against the Fano militiamen and members of the 51st Regiment were destroyed in a battle. The tweet gave an impression also that the pictured individual(s) was (were) captured during an operation in Gondar, a city located to the north of the Amhara Regional State. The post received over 87 retweets and 8,000 views(see image below).

However, the image is outdated and unrelated to the ongoing conflict in Amhara Region – the conflict that erupted in April 2023 between the Ethiopian government and Fano militants. MFC observed that the aforementioned Twitter account repeatedly spreads disinformation.

Three weeks ago, on May 2, the same image was shared by a Facebook account named Mereja Tv, which has over 1.2 million followers. The post claimed that the image was related to the current conflict in Amhara, which is untrue (see image below).

However, this image too is outdated and unrelated to the current conflict in Amhara.

A Google Reverse Image Search reveals the image was first shared on social media on October 30, 2021, by a social media account named Stalin Gebreselassie. This individual is known for expressing support for the TPLF/TDF – a political party and an armed group – during the war in Tigray region of Ethiopia. Currently, he is based in Washington DC, USA, and works at Zara Media Network, a media that he reportedly founded. 

Based on the result of the tool we used, MFC confirmed that the image shared by the X account claiming that “members of the 51st Regiment were destroyed in today’s battle and that the pictured individual(s) was (were) captured during an operation in Gondar” is false. 

Context

The conflict in Amhara Regional State began in April 2023 when the Ethiopian military raided the Amhara region to disarm regional special forces and Fano militias – who disregarded the government’s announcement of disarming and integrating them into its formal security forces. This sparked resistance with the Fano Militiamen, finally leading to clashes with the federal government’s military forces. The situation remains tense, which has been resulting in death of civilians, causing significant damage to properties, and displacing hundreds of thousands people. Thus, the post has been circulating in this context. 

The post Image of Captured Soldier Not Fit the Claim appeared first on MultiFactCheck.