Fact Check: Weapons seized from Assam mosque? This clip is from Manipur
This video is from Manipur and shows a large cache of sophisticated weapons recovered from an insurgent group's camp during a raid.
India Today Fact Check
A video going viral right now shows a large cache of weapons displayed on tables. These were allegedly recovered from a mosque in Assam. In the video, firearms, rifles, ammunition, explosives, and tactical gear can be seen laid out.
Sharing the video on X, one person wrote, “This stock was taken out from a single masjid in Assam!”
India Today Fact Check found out that this video is from Manipur and shows a large cache of sophisticated weapons recovered from an insurgent group’s camp during a raid.
OUR PROBE
Upon reverse searching the frames of the video, it led us to a Times of India report on YouTube, published on May 21. This video report contained the viral clip. It also featured a police press briefing, and other videos of a weapons cache.
According to the report, on May 20, during a Manipur Police special operation in Lamdeng, two active cadres of the United National Liberation Front-Pambei, or the UNLF-P, were caught. Based on information from them, a second operation was conducted. This led to the weapons seen in the viral video being recovered.
We also found a news report from the Imphal Times and The Hindu about these operations. According to The Hindu, a joint team of the Manipur Police, the Assam Rifles, and the Central Reserve Police Force conducted this operation. The UNLF-P, the oldest valley-based armed group in Manipur, signed a peace agreement with the Centre and the State government on November 29, 2023.
Reportedly, during the first phase of the operation, security forces seized 29 weapons, including AK-series rifles, M-series rifles, pistols, and other firearms, along with war-like materials.
In a follow-up operation on Anti-Terrorism Day, May 21, the joint forces recovered 38 more weapons and heavy military-grade equipment, including AK-series rifles, M-series rifles, a sniper rifle, carbines, shotguns, mortars, an RPG-7 launcher, an anti-drone jammer, and a huge cache of explosives. UNLF-P cadres reportedly were in the process of selling the looted police weapons when they were caught.
We also found the viral clip shared by the Manipur Police in a long post about the two operations.
We also checked for news reports about weapons seized in Assam from a mosque but found nothing credible.
Thus, it’s clear that the viral claim is false.
(Written by Rashmi Gupta)
A video going viral right now shows a large cache of weapons displayed on tables. These were allegedly recovered from a mosque in Assam. In the video, firearms, rifles, ammunition, explosives, and tactical gear can be seen laid out.
Sharing the video on X, one person wrote, “This stock was taken out from a single masjid in Assam!”
India Today Fact Check found out that this video is from Manipur and shows a large cache of sophisticated weapons recovered from an insurgent group’s camp during a raid.
OUR PROBE
Upon reverse searching the frames of the video, it led us to a Times of India report on YouTube, published on May 21. This video report contained the viral clip. It also featured a police press briefing, and other videos of a weapons cache.
According to the report, on May 20, during a Manipur Police special operation in Lamdeng, two active cadres of the United National Liberation Front-Pambei, or the UNLF-P, were caught. Based on information from them, a second operation was conducted. This led to the weapons seen in the viral video being recovered.
We also found a news report from the Imphal Times and The Hindu about these operations. According to The Hindu, a joint team of the Manipur Police, the Assam Rifles, and the Central Reserve Police Force conducted this operation. The UNLF-P, the oldest valley-based armed group in Manipur, signed a peace agreement with the Centre and the State government on November 29, 2023.
Reportedly, during the first phase of the operation, security forces seized 29 weapons, including AK-series rifles, M-series rifles, pistols, and other firearms, along with war-like materials.
In a follow-up operation on Anti-Terrorism Day, May 21, the joint forces recovered 38 more weapons and heavy military-grade equipment, including AK-series rifles, M-series rifles, a sniper rifle, carbines, shotguns, mortars, an RPG-7 launcher, an anti-drone jammer, and a huge cache of explosives. UNLF-P cadres reportedly were in the process of selling the looted police weapons when they were caught.
We also found the viral clip shared by the Manipur Police in a long post about the two operations.
We also checked for news reports about weapons seized in Assam from a mosque but found nothing credible.
Thus, it’s clear that the viral claim is false.
(Written by Rashmi Gupta)