By: Ankita Kulkarni
August 8 2023
2022 video shared as people welcoming Burkina Faso's leader after 2023 Russia-Africa summit
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Fact-Check
The Verdict False
The video shows Burkina Faso military leader Ibrahim Traore parading after a coup in October 2022. It is unrelated to the recent Russia-Africa summit.
Claim ID fabcd22f
Context
The second Russia-Africa Summit was held in St Petersburg's Expo Forum from July 27-28, 2023, and was attended by delegations from 49 African countries, including 17 heads of state. Following this, a video clip (archive here) circulating on social media shows Burkina Faso military leader Ibrahim Traore traveling in a car, surrounded by hundreds of people cheering the leader from the sides of the street. Sharing this video, users (see here and here) have claimed that it shows people welcoming the captain upon his return from Russia.
One such post shared on X (formerly Twitter) dated August 1, 2023, shared the video with the caption, "Nationwide celebration: The leader of Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Traore, was greeted by several thousand fellow citizens when he returned from the Russia-Africa summit During the meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the leader of Burkina Faso emphasized that his people support Russia's special military operation in Ukraine." The video is also being shared on Facebook with a similar narrative.
(Source: Facebook/@Faith Attaguile, @John Orji, @Boolean C. Enyiason)
However, the video is from 2022, and has no connection with 2023 Russia-Africa summit.
In fact
Research showed us that the video dates back to October 2, 2022, and shows celebrations in Ouagadougou's streets when Traore seized power in a coup. A reverse image search of a screenshot from the viral clip led us to a YouTube video uploaded by AFP News Agency on October 2, 2022. The video description states, "The new self-proclaimed leader of the military junta ruling Burkina Faso, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, parades in the streets of Ouagadougou and hails the cheering crowd."
Source: (YouTube/AFP)
We also found the same video posted by the American financial magazine Barron's on October 3, 2022, captioned, "Burkina Faso: military captain who claims to have taken power parades in Ouagadougou."
A BBC report published on October 3, 2022, noted that Burkina Faso's Captain Ibrahim Traoré became the latest military leader of the country after he ousted the former interim President, Lt Col Paul-Henri Damiba, on September 30, 2022.
A day after the coup on October 2, 2022, a video emerged showing Traoré holding a parade on the streets of Ouagadougou, which is now being falsely shared as people welcoming him after the Russia-Africa summit.
Furthermore, Logically Facts found that Traoré did attend the 2023 Russia-Africa summit. The transcript of his speech is available on the official website of the President of the Russian Federation. However, the viral video is unrelated to the recent summit.
The verdict
An old video of Burkina Faso's military leader Ibrahim Traoré parading on the streets of Ouagadougou after the coup in 2022 is being falsely shared as people welcoming him upon his return from the 2023 Russia-Africa summit. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.