Pro-Palestine demonstrations have taken place in London and across the UK in response to Israeli airstrikes that primarily targeted women and children. Israel resumed its attacks on Gaza immediately after a week-long truce with Hamas ended, resulting in over 700 Palestinian casualties in the past 24 hours. Since October 7, 2023, more than 15,000 Palestinians have lost their lives in Gaza, while Israel reports an official death toll of around 1,200.
Amid this, a video showing a procession is widely circulated on social media claiming that it is a a pro-Palestinian protest in London.
The video is shared on Facebook with a caption: “London, you have a problem! Europe, say “thank you” Angela Merkel!” Where’s she btw? USA, close that f***ing border NOW! London yesterday. Video by Darya Safai MP @SafaiDarya When I fled from the Islamic Republic of Iran, I never thought I would ever see such images of London. Terrible to see this Islamisation spreading in Europe”.
Here’s the link to the above post.
FACT CHECK
NewsMobile fact-checked the above claim, and found it to be FALSE.
The NM team identified a quote-tweet by the MSNBC journalist Mehdi Hasan highlighting that the viral video is dated back to 2021. Contrary to claims of it being a political protest, Hasan points out that it is, in fact, a Shia religious procession in London, UK.
This is a Shia religious procession for Imam Husayn on Ashura day in 2021.
This is not from 2023, is not a political protest, and has nothing to do with Israel or Gaza
Not sure why the editor of the UK’s Jewish Chronicle seems so obsessed with fear-mongering about Muslims. https://t.co/UHOucFyPag
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) December 3, 2023
Conducting a keyword search Oxford Street London Ashura 2021, our team spotted videos of Ashura processions in London on August 19, 2021. These processions had been organised by The Hussaini Foundation.
For Shia Muslims, Ashura is a solemn day commemorating the death of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad and the third Shia Imam.
Upon checking The Hussaini Association’s YouTube channel, we discovered videos of the procession on August 19, 2021. The banners seen on Oxford Street are matching with the viral video. Additionally, the distinctive red bus visible behind the woman in the viral video matches with the scenes captured in The Hussaini Foundation’s procession videos.
The official handle of London’s Metropolitan Police, in response to Jake Wallis Simons’ post, now deleted, states: “This video has been shared a lot this weekend. We’ve seen some comments from people who are under the impression that it was filmed recently or that it relates to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. We believe it was filmed at an Ashura Day event in 2021. It has no link to current events.”
This video has been shared a lot this weekend. We’ve seen a number of comments from people who are under the impression it was filmed recently or that it relates to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
We believe it was actually filmed at an Ashura Day event in 2021.…
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) December 3, 2023
Thus, it is confirmed that an old unrelated video has been falsely shared as a recent pro-Palestinian movement in London.
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