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| - Fact check: Child rescue video of Syria falsely viral as that of Morocco quake
India Today found that this viral video is from an earthquake that occurred in Syria earlier this year.
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India Today Fact Check
The viral video is from February 2023 and shows a child in Aleppo, Syria, trapped under a broken building following an earthquake.
The recent earthquake in Morocco has claimed at least 2,900 lives, causing devastation in Marrakesh and the surrounding areas. Amid this tragic event, social media platforms have been flooded with videos and pictures claiming to be from the earthquake in the North African country.
One such video shows a child trapped under rubble being rescued. A Twitter user who shared the viral video wrote, "Our prayers and support go out to Morocco for their safety." An archived version of the viral video can be seen here.
India Today found that this viral video is from an earthquake that occurred in Syria earlier this year.
Our Probe
Reverse-searching frames from the video led us to a report published by Express on February 8, 2023, which contained an extended version of the clip. According to the report, the incident took place in Aleppo, Syria, when a powerful earthquake near the Turkey-Syria border devastated the region earlier this year.
The report further mentioned that the Syrian Civil Defence rescued the baby who was trapped under the rubble of her home. They discovered the girl pinned beneath a man who tragically lost his life under the broken concrete.
A Turkish news portal also shared the viral video, reporting that the baby was buried under the rubble in Aleppo. The child survived because she was shielded by the body of a dead man.
Another Iraqi media organisation confirmed that the viral incident was indeed from the earthquake that struck Syria earlier this year. The report, however, noted that the child survived because she was buried under the body of her sister, who had died.
So, while it remains unclear whether it was a man or the child's sister under whose body the child was trapped, it’s more than evident that the viral video has nothing to do with the earthquake in Morocco.
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