Do These Pictures Show Landmines Planted by Kuki Militants in Manipur?

All the visuals used to claim that they show landmines planted in Manipur by Kukis are old and unrelated.

Several pictures are going viral on the internet with users claiming that they show landmines planted in Manipur's Heikol by 'Kuki militants'.

What have users said?: While some users shared the image to claim that a landmine blast happened in Manipur, others targeted the Kuki community over the pictures.

Who shared it?: A YouTube channel called 'Elite TV' (archive here) carried a news bulletin that talked about a landmine blast in Heikol. The bulletin carried three pictures. The visuals later went viral on social media platforms.

(Swipe right to view all the images.)

(More archives of similar claims can be found here, here, here, and here.)

What is the truth?: While there are some unverified news reports which said that a landmine blast happened in Heikol on 21 June, all the visuals seen in the video are old and unrelated to the alleged blast as well as Manipur.

Why is the claim misleading?: While there are reports of ongoing violence in Manipur, these old and unrelated visuals make the claim misleading and alarming. The video report also didn't mention if the visuals were used for representational purposes, thus, causing people to share it further without proper context.

Image 1

• On performing a simple reverse image search, we came across the same image uploaded on Wikipedia.

• The image's caption said, "A Russian TM-46 anti-tank blast mine."

• We searched further and found that the image was created on 1 January 1986, according to the website.

• The location was mentioned as North Carolina in the United States of America (USA).

• The same image was used in a report published on The News Minute which dated back to 2016. Arab News also used the image in 2019.

Image 2

• A Google Lens search led us to an article carrying the same picture on a website called 'Defense One'.

• The picture's caption said, "U.S. Marine Corps explosive ordnance disposal technicians place thermites on anti-tank landmines to demonstrate how to clear mines without moving them during 2019's Cobra Gold exercise in Thailand. U.S. MARINE CORPS / CPL. JAMIN M. POWELL."

• We searched the caption on Google and came across a public archive website. It mentioned the date of the picture as 19 February 2019.

• It further said that the picture was from the Cobra Gold exercise which took place in Thailand.

Reports on the exercise: According to US Embassy website, the exercise took place at various locations in Thailand between 12 February and 23 February 2019.

Image 3

• We performed a reverse image search and found the image uploaded on the official Facebook page of The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS).

• The picture was uploaded with several others on 10 February.

• It's caption mentioned how Syria is going through a humanitarian crisis.

• It was also uploaded on the official website of UNMAS. The picture's caption said, "UNMAS explosive ordnance assessment team conducting a survey in Darayya, Syria."

What happened in Heikol?: According to some reports, a powerful bomb blast happened in a village near Churachandpur on 20 June at around 9 AM. While no human casualties were reported, a cow was killed due to the impact.

• The reports said that militants allegedly planted landmine, however, none of them specified the identities of the accused.

• We were unable to independently verify if landmines caused the blast and neither has the police issued a statement on the same.

Recent update on Manipur: Three people were reportedly injured in a suspected IED blast that happened in the Bishnupur district on 21 June, The Indian Express reported.

• It further mentioned that a gunfight between the Assam Rifles team and unknown gunmen broke out in Imphal at 5 AM, on Thursday, 22 June.

• Union Home Minister Amit Shah has called for an all-party meeting to discuss the situation in Manipur, where over 100 people have been killed in the ongoing violence.

• Former Congress President Sonia Gandhi issued a video message talking about the violence in Manipur.

Conclusion: While The Quint could not independently ascertain the if there were any blasts in Manipur due to planting of landmines by Kuki militants, it's clear that the images being used to make the claim are old and unrelated to Manipur.

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