A video shared on Facebook allegedly shows Thailand’s health minister crying while receiving a COVID-19 vaccine injection.

Facebook/Screenshot

Verdict: False

The video dates back to at least 2018, well before the COVID-19 pandemic began. The man in the video appears to be speaking Mandarin and does not resemble Thailand’s health minister.

Fact Check:

The video shows a man who appears to be in emotional distress as a health care worker attempts to give him an injection. The caption and text inside the video claim the man depicted is Thailand’s minister of public health, Anutin Charnvirakul, with the caption saying in part, “#Amazing_video Health minister of Thailand getting covid19 (sic) vaccination.”

A reverse image search of key frames revealed the video actually dates back to at least early 2018, when the Hong Kong-based outlet South China Morning Post (SCMP) posted the footage on its YouTube channel. The SCMP titled the YouTube video “Chinese man scared of his first ever injection.”

In the video, the people can be heard speaking Mandarin. Check Your Fact could not identify the man in the video; however, he does not closely resemble Anutin, who can be seen in photos taken by Agence France-Presse. (RELATED: Viral Image Falsely Claims Hank Aaron Was ‘Killed’ By The COVID-19 Vaccine)

The novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 first emerged in late 2019, so it is impossible for the video to be connected to the ongoing pandemic. The fact-checking website Boom Live found the inaccurate claim that the video shows Anutin receiving a COVID-19 vaccine jab had been shared on Twitter by Pakistani-Canadian writer Tarek Farah. His tweet has received over 29,400 views at the time of publication.

Thailand is expected to receive thousands of doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine this month, according to Reuters. The country is also working to produce the vaccine locally for mass vaccinations in June, the outlet reported.