FACT CHECK: Video Claims To Show Ukrainian Drone Attack On Civilians
A video shared on X claims to show a Ukrainian drone attack on civilians in Donetsk City.
Ukrainian🇺🇦 drone operator dropping grenades on civilians in Donetsk city.
Killing people waiting for a bus?
Nobody in America supports this war and the American tax payers are disgusted by it. pic.twitter.com/2ujLt69fcN
— Modern Warfare with Alex Jones (@AlexJonesMW3) February 20, 2024
Verdict: Misleading
The people in the video are apparently wearing military fatigues and do not appear to be civilians. The video was also not taken in Donetsk City.
Fact Check:
Two French aid workers were killed in a “deliberate” drone attack in Ukraine, according to RFI. The aid group, HEKS, said that the French and Ukrainian governments had opened up an investigation, the outlet reported.
Social media users have been claiming to show a Ukrainian drone attack on civilians. One user wrote, “Ukrainian🇺🇦 drone operator dropping grenades on civilians in Donetsk city. Killing people waiting for a bus? Nobody in America supports this war and the American tax payers are disgusted by it.”
However, this claim is misleading. Check Your Fact found that the original videos in the X post. They are from February 2023. The first part of the video has been edited to remove what appears to be a weapon in one of the men’s hands.
Дамблєніє Донецька на новому рівні pic.twitter.com/5yZg3M73XP
— Gulli_ver (@Gulli_ver_sn) February 26, 2023
The second part of the video, while not clearly edited, shows that at least two of the men are wearing green fatigues that are similar to what is used by Russian and DPR troops. One of the men in the video is clearly wearing a red armband, which is used by some Russian-aligned forces.
Screenshot/X
GeoConfirmed, a group of volunteers who geolocate video and images in various conflicts, also stated that the video was not taken in Donetsk City but rather in Staromykhailivka. (RELATED: No, Video Does Not Show Residents Of Avdiivka Greeting Russian Troops)
GeoConfirmed – Disinformation.
“Ukrainian drone operator dropping grenades on civilians in Donetsk city.”
1,5 million views and almost everything is wrong.
It’s not in Donetsk city
(but Staromykhailivka, 15km west of Donetsk City, 4km from frontline),these are not… pic.twitter.com/cXgNrQ0ref
— GeoConfirmed (@GeoConfirmed) February 22, 2024
“GeoConfirmed – Disinformation. ‘Ukrainian drone operator dropping grenades on civilians in Donetsk city.; 1,5 million views and almost everything is wrong. It’s not in Donetsk city (but Staromykhailivka, 15km west of Donetsk City, 4km from frontline),” reads part of the tweet.
