“Man from Saudi spits in the face of the poor receptionist at a Hospital in London then attacks other staff..”
That’s the caption that accompanies a video shared on Facebook by ‘English Defence League’, a far-right group based out of the United Kingdom.
The video was also shared by several others with similar captions.
What the Video Claims
The video shows a man in white robes and a traditional red and white headscarf, like one often worn by citizens of West Asian countries, spitting on the face of a blonde woman before violently assaulting others before being restrained.
The video shared from the English Defence League’s Facebook page on 1 July 2018, has been viewed over 4,50,000 times, and was shared as many as 40,000 times as per an AFP report.
Is the Claim Correct?
The incident seen on camera did take place, yes. However, it isn’t from a hospital in London, and it certainly isn’t a video of a man from Saudi, as the English Defence League claims.
The footage was caught by the CCTV cameras of a veterinary hospital in Kuwait, and is from July 2017, news agency AFP found.
The incident took place at ‘Royal Animal Hospital’, a veterinary clinic in Kuwait city, AFP verified. So, while the attack did take place, it was not from the time or place EDL claims.
A doctor conducted an examination on a cat brought by the attacker, and found out that it was perfectly healthy. This angered the man in white, who asked for his money back. When the conversation heated up, the man spat at the doctor, and when he was restrained, he assaulted the others at the clinic, an animal rights activist, told AFP on the condition of anonymity.
Kuwaiti media outlets also verified this version of events.
English Defence League: A Repeat Offender
Additionally, it’s prudent to note that the English Defence League has shared content with captions that point at attempts to engender hate and anger towards Muslims, migrants, and other “foreign” communities.
This caption, is similar to another video shared out of context by the page, which shows a man hitting two women in a hospital.
The caption claims the man is a refugee. However, as was disproved by CrossCheck, the video was of an inebriated man from Russia, shot by CCTV cameras in 2017.
The Bottom Line
The incident did NOT take place in London. It took place in Kuwait.
The incident did NOT take place in 2018. It was from 2017.
(With inputs from AFP Fact Check)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)