Amid Coup Rumours, 2015 Explosion Footage From Chinese City Shared With Misleading Claims

There are rumours of a coup in China circulating on social media. Several users have asserted that Chinese President Xi Jinping has been placed under house arrest and ousted as the leader of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA). In this context, a video that purports to depict an explosion during the coup in Beijing is making the rounds on social media.

A Facebook user shared the video with the caption, "Footage of big explosions coming from #Beijing during the China coup against Xi Jinping."

Another Twitter user with the Name Manas Mishra shared the viral video with the caption, " #Beijing Footage of big explosions coming from #Beijing during the china coup against Xi Jinping? The video that is going viral on social media is true, can anyone tell ? #chinacoup #chinesecoup #china #XiJingping"

Another Twitter user with the name KRoshan shared the viral video with the caption, " #Beijing Footage of big explosions coming from #Beijing during the china coup against Xi Jinping? The video that is going viral on social media is true, can anyone tell ? #chinacoup #chinesecoup #china #XiJingping".

Claim:

Old video of blasts in China being shared as recent in midst of coup rumours.

Fact Check:

A reverse image search of the video's keyframes by the Logical Indian fact-checking team revealed that it was released by Daily Motion in 2015. The video is named "Huge Explosion in Tianjin, China, 200 Tons TNT Equivalent."

Using this as a clue, we conducted a keyword search and discovered a BBC video with comparable visuals that was released on August 14, 2015. According to the video's caption, it depicts "two enormous explosions in the Chinese city of Tianjin." A business that specialised in handling hazardous items operated a warehouse that caught fire and detonated. Additionally, it was stated that hundreds of injuries and dozens of deaths occurred. Dan van Duren, an eyewitness, took the video.

A thorough account of the 173 fatalities in China's biggest industrial tragedy was published by The Guardian on September 12, 2015. Investigation revealed that 700 tonnes of very poisonous sodium cyanide had been kept in the Ruihai International Logistics facilities that caught fire in excess of what was permitted. Additionally, the warehouses were constructed nearer to households.

Conclusion:

Evidently, the popular video is from 2015 blasts in Tianjin, China and has nothing to do with the claimed coup in China. The assertion is therefore untrue.

If you have any news that you believe needs to be fact-checked, please email us at factcheck@thelogicalindian.com or WhatsApp at 6364000343.

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