A video of what is assumed to be the IAF strike on terrorist camps in Pakistan is being circulated on social media. The 'non-military, pre-emptive air strike in Balakot' as described by Secretary of Ministry of External Affairs Vijay Gokhale took place in the early hours of Tuesday. This strike targeted Jaish-e-Mohammad terror camps and according to MEA, over 300 terrorists, including JeM chief Masood Azhar's brother-in-law Yusuf Azhar, were killed.
The video has been shared on Facebook and Twitter and forwarded on WhatsApp. One of the users, who posted the video, was ABP journalist Vikas Bhadauria with the caption in Hindi, "something like this must have happened".
कुछ ऐसा हुआ होगा। #IndiaStrikesBack #IndianAirForce #Balakot #surgicalstrike2 pic.twitter.com/nrrCE1Z5t6
— Vikas Bhadauria ABP (@vikasbha) February 26, 2019
Truth and Verification
By running the YouTube video through InVid, we have found out that the video is actually from a game known as Arma 2. The title of the video is "Really Short Engagement (ft. Taliban) - Apache Gunner FLIR Cam #6 - Arma 2" and it was released in 2015.
Upon further research on YouTube, it was discovered that the one-minute 'IAF strike' video which was being circulated is a trimmed down version of the two-minute Arma 2 video game.
Final Verdict
The video clip of the IAF strike in Balakot is actually footage from a video game uploaded four years ago.
Similarly, another footage is also making rounds on social media showing a missile fired in the air. According to a report by AltNews, a Twitter user, Ajay Kushwaha, posted the video hailing the IAF attack.
Kushwaha is followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In his caption, Kushwaha wrote, "India strikes again. This is new India under Leadership of Honourable PM Shri @narendramodi ji. India's airforce destroyed terrorist camps in Pakistan and more than 200-300 militant have been killed According to sources.
@ImranKhanPTI how's the josh?? #Balakot #SurgicalStrike2
India strikes again. This is new India under Leadership of Honourable PM Shri @narendramodi ji. India's airforce destroyed terrorist camps in Pakistan and more than 200-300 militant have been killed According to souces.
— ??अजय कुशवाहा?? ??Ajay?? (@AjayKushwaha_) February 26, 2019
@ImranKhanPTI how's the josh ??#Balakot #SurgicalStrike2 pic.twitter.com/8FRaUK3TfK
Surprisingly, the video was also posted by a Pakistani Twitter user, khalid_pk, who claimed "Visuals of Pak Air Force in Action over and around Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir, and areas near LoC after a failed attempt by the Indian Air Force to intrude into Pak air space."
Visuals of Pak Air Force in Action over and around Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir, and areas near LoC after failed attempt by Indian air force to intrude into Pak air space pic.twitter.com/9L32C4iD4B
— Khalid khi (@khalid_pk) February 26, 2019
Abhijit Iyer-Mitra, a defence analyst, said that if the video was genuine, the issuing of the flares would indicate that there was air-to-air action between Indian and Pakistani fighter jets.
Truth
A Twitter user, XULQIMOON, tweeted that the video is a three-year-old video and is actually a flypast by Pakistani fighter jets during its Independence Day on August 14.
Verification
By simply searching 'Islamabad Pakistani airforce night' on YouTube, the first result is the video similar to the video posted by khalid_pk. The video on YouTube was uploaded on September 23, 2016, by a user Muhammad Zohaib. Hence it can be verified that the video posted by khalid_pk is not the footage of the Pakistani security force firing at the Indian fighter jets.
