Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Claim
Russian Air Force clashing with the rebel Wagner group.
Fact
Footage is from a military simulation video game.
Several social media users are circulating a video clip, claiming it shows the Russian Air Force engaging in a battle with “Wagner PMC Ground Troops”.
The archived versions of the tweets can be seen here and here.
Rebellion In Russia
Russia was plunged into crisis after Yevgeny Prigozhin, the 62-year-old chief of the mercenary Wagner group, reportedly began an armed mutiny. Prigozhin has become increasingly critical of Russia’s defence chiefs in recent months, posting angry tirades on his Telegram channel.
The head of the Wagner mercenary group had vowed on Saturday to “go to the end” to topple the Russian military leadership in the country. Since the declaration of the rebellion by the Wagner Group, military establishments of two cities had been captured and three Russian helicopters had been gunned down. However, troops from Russia’s Wagner mercenary group have reportedly started leaving the city of Rostov-on-Don, less than 24 hours after attempting a rebellion that saw them heading toward Moscow. In a post on Telegram, Prigozhin said the move was done to avoid bloodshed.
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Fact check
Newschecker noticed that the sound was not syncing with the clip, which seemed like CGI, especially the rounds of fire and the greenery.
We then ran a reverse image search, which led us to this Youtube short, dated March 31, 2023, titled “Russia’s Elite Air Force vs Ukrainian SAM Missiles Combat | MilSim Arma 3”.
“This video is a virtual game simulation. The battle simulation may differ from the real one. We simulated articles appearing in the news. ARMA Game Play Videos,” read the description of the video, uploaded by Battle POPs, a military simulation channel. The channel has uploaded several similar military simulation videos.
We also came across the same video in this tweet, dated June 20, 2023, stating it is a clip from Arma 3, military simulation video game beta release. We learnt that Arma 3 is a realism-based military tactical shooter video game developed by Bohemia Interactive.
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Conclusion
Video game footage of an air battle is being peddled as a clip of the Wagner group rebellion in Russia.
Result: False
Sources
Youtube video, Battle POPs, March 31, 2023
Arma 3 official website
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
