Original article (in Bosnian) was published on 10/07/2023; Author: Marija Manojlović
Several web portals presented a low-quality video as evidence that the clearing of a church in Odesa that was damaged by a rocket attack was faked.
On July 25, 2023, the web portal Nulta tacka published an article featuring the following title:
Fake footage? A Ukrainian woman was filmed carrying several large slabs of “concrete” after the alleged Russian attack
The article states that the Savior-Transfiguration Cathedral Church in Odesa was almost completely destroyed after it was hit by a missile, and conflicting Russian and Ukrainian positions are conveyed – that Russia fired a missile, that is, that the church was damaged by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile. It then describes a video taken during the clearing of the object, implying that it was faked and that it was published by the media.
Regardless of the truth, a video showing the efforts of civilians and first responders to clean up the scene is going viral after a woman is seen lifting a huge chunk of what appears to be concrete with one hand.
(…)
After reviewing the original news clip, which is still available on the Sky News YouTube channel, Info wars can confirm that the strange phenomenon was actually broadcast by the media.
In the video, some women can be seen collecting from the ruins with one lady carrying five huge pieces of concrete in one hand and two pieces in the other hand.
Maybe instead of chasing down and grabbing hapless Ukrainians off the streets and forcing them to fight on the front lines with Russia, the Ukrainians should hire some of these super-strong women!
It is now unclear what materials the woman grabbed or why the scene would have to be staged in the first place.
The whole attack on the church looks like disinformation, as the Ukrainian government recently criticized the National Orthodox church for its ties to Russia and dealt with church officials and parishioners across the country.
The article is accompanied by a photograph of a female person carrying several pieces of material said to resemble concrete.
Photo: Screenshot/Nulta tačka
The article also contains a clip from the Sky News show.
A day later, the web portalProvjeri (.hr) unequivocally presented the same video in its title and text as proof that Ukraine was caught in “faking war footage”.
Ukraine caught in faking war footage
Ukrainian military personnel were caught on camera posting fake war footage in the aftermath of an alleged “Russian” attack on the Savior-Transfiguration Cathedral – Ukraine’s largest Orthodox church.
Ukrainian officials claimed that Russia fired a missile at the church while the Kremlin suggested that a Ukrainian air defense missile had misfired and hit the building.
A viral video that has spread on social media shows the church being cleaned by civilians and emergency services on the scene, and a woman lifting a large piece of what is most likely supposed to be concrete with just one hand.
Further on in the video, a couple of women can be seen picking up the rubble, with one woman carrying five huge pieces of concrete in one hand and the other two pieces in the other hand.
Of course, taught by the experience of editing videos of fake deaths and patients during the coronavirus madness, one cannot help but wonder if the whole thing is being done again now and if the war is really going on, why such scenes had to be staged.
The article of the web portal Provjeri (.hr) was also published by the SOTT web portal on July 26, 2023.
What are the facts?
Ukrainian officials announced on July 23 that one person was killed and 19 were injured in Russian rocket attacks on Odesa, and that the Savior-Transfiguration Congregational Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UPC) was severely damaged. The BBC reports in Serbian that half of the church was left without a roof. The central piles and the foundation were destroyed, the windows and decorative reliefs on the walls were broken, and part of it was burned. The Russian side confirmed that its troops carried out a strike on Sunday in the Odesa region, but said that the targeted objects were “at a safe distance” from the temple. The Russian Ministry of Defense revealed in a statement that the church was probably hit by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile.
The church is more than 200 years old and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
So, the church was undeniably damaged, which is confirmed by numerous videos and photographs (1, 2, 3).
Was the clearance footage faked?
The articles of the Nulta tacka and Provjeri are translations of texts from the English language published on the pages Info wars (24.7.2023) and The People’s Voice (25.7.2023). These web portals are known for spreading disinformation and conspiracy theories (1, 2).
The articles are equipped with a frame from a video that should be proof of falsification. It shows a woman carrying several pieces of material that is indicated to be similar to concrete. Since the woman carries the material effortlessly, the articles imply that the clearing of the church is faked.
Both articles contain a clip of the show broadcast on July 23, 2023, on the Sky News channel, from which a screenshot was taken. Sky News, in fact, used footage from the Rudaw Media Network channel, whose logo can be seen on the footage. The woman from the screenshot appears in this video at 1:31, and then she is seen at 2:25 carrying the same material.
Photo: Screenshots from a video posted on the Rudaw website
This video was also shared on social networks outside our speaking area, featuring similar claims, as reported by Reuters, The Observes, AFP Fact Check and Logically.
These platforms have pointed out that higher-quality footage, such as that of Rudaw Media Network, shows that the material the woman in the video is wearing is not concrete. The Odesa Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church told Reuters that the woman in the video is wearing one of the light decorative elements that were used during the restoration.
The Odesa Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church told Reuters via email that light, modern materials were used during the restoration of the cathedral between 2002 and 2010.
“Specifically, light decorative elements made of styrofoam, expanded polystyrene, etc. which have a low weight and the necessary structural strength”, the diocese states. “The women in the video are carrying one of these items”.
Such elements can be seen on Reuters footage from the cathedral during the clearing (here, here), as well as on numerous videos showing the consequences of the attack, published on the cathedral’s Facebook page, for example (here).
Photo: Screenshot from a video posted on the Reuters agency website
Raskrinkavanje has previously dealt with disinformation in which various videos and photos are tried to be presented as proof that Ukraine is falsifying war events and victims of the Russian invasion (1, 2, 3).
The video showing the woman carrying the damaged parts of the church in Odesa is not fake. The claim that it is, published in an article on the web portal Provjeri(.hr), is considered fake news. The same claim featured in an article by SOTT’ receives the rating for the distribution of fake news. Questioning the authenticity of the video by claiming that the woman is carrying large pieces of “concrete” or concrete-like material is considered a manipulation of the facts.