Video of baby being rescued in India shared as footage following Moroccan quake

By: Umme Kulsum
September 12 2023

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Video of a new-born baby buried in soil being rescued shared as the aftermath of the Morocco earthquake (Source: X, Facebook/Screenshots)

What's the claim?

After a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco on September 8, 2023, a video of a person pulling out a newborn baby from debris is circulating across social media platforms, including X and Facebook. (Archives here and here). An X user shared the video with the caption, "Here, a newborn baby is dug out of the debris after a magnitude 6.8 earthquake devastates Morocco. Pray for this child." The post was viewed more than  2,57,000 times and was shared about 300 times at the time of writing this story.

Screenshot of claims made online. (Source: X)

However, this video is unrelated to the earthquake in Morocco. 

What we found 

Logically Facts found the same 12-second video showing the rescue of a newborn baby published in a Hindi news publication, Dainik Bhaskar. The article states that the visuals were captured in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur district. According to the report, on September 9, 2023, a couple saw an odd movement in the soil. They then discovered that a newborn infant had been buried in the ground. A report by the Times of India said that the baby was miraculously alive. 

The same video was also published in a video report by the News18 UP Uttarakhand on YouTube dated September 9. The report was titled, Kanpur News: मां ने नवजात को जिंदा जमीन में दबाया (Kanpur news: Mother buries newborn baby alive).” The viral video can be seen at 1:39 minutes into the YouTube video.

Screenshot of the video news report showing the same viral video (Source: News 18 UP Uttar Pradesh)

According to a report by Hindustan Times, Dr. Vikas Kumar, at Moosa Nagar Primary Health Centre, said the rescued baby was safe and had been put under special care. A case was registered under the Musanagar police station.

Using this information, we searched for the Kanpur Dehat Police's official X account and discovered a video update from an area officer in Bhognipur. The officer reported the situation and stated that the baby was safe and that an additional investigation would be conducted.

According to CNN, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco, killing at least 2,497 people. There have been 2,476 recorded injuries. The World Health Organization said more than 300,000 people were affected in Marrakech, the chief city of central Morocco and surrounding areas, a report by Reuters stated.

The verdict

A video showing a baby being dug out from the ground has been shared, claiming to show footage from the aftermath of the Morocco earthquake that hit the country on September 8, 2023. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.