Claim: Nigerian Embassy in Niger set ablaze
Source: Social media
Verdict: FALSE
Researched by Hamza Ibrahim
Multiple videos shared on Facebook showing a burning building is being portrayed online to suggest that the Nigerian Embassy in the Republic of Niger has been set ablaze in the aftermath of the July 2023 coup d’etat.
One of the videos show papers scattered on the floor in front of the burning building with a group of young people loitering around the premises.
The video which has grossed over 6,000 views from two Facebook pages comes with captions, including “Nigeria Embassy in Niger Republic finally set ablaze by Niger angry youths” and “Nigeria Embassy In Niger Republic Set Ablaze, Tinubu Escape.”
This fact-check seeks to verify the claim.
Fact-Check
Checks by FactSpace West Africa established that the claim attached to the video is misleading and that the Nigerian embassy in Niger Republic has not been set on fire.
A freelance journalist in Niger, Abdoulrazak Ibrahima, told FactSpace West Africa that the burning building was the headquarters of the ruling party, Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism -Tarayya (known by the French acronym PNDS-Tarayya). The ousted President Mohamed Bazoum belonged to the party.
“A day after the coup, it was heard that some members of PNDS Tarayya were meeting at the party’s office, then hoodlums mobilised themselves and attacked the members while the meeting was ongoing,” Ibrahima said in a phone interview.
The party office was set on fire by the supporters of the military junta on July 27 2023, that’s a day after the coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum.
The response was corroborated by a publication by the Human Rights Watch which read in part; “On July 27, supporters of the junta ransacked and set fire to the PNDS headquarters in the capital, Niamey. They also burned scores of vehicles and physically assaulted several PNDS members who had gathered at the party’s headquarters for a meeting. The security forces did not take adequate measures to prevent the violence,” HRW stated.
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs addressed the claim in a press release shared on its X account, urging people to “disregard” the video as “fake” (here).
FactSpace West Africa also found news publications on the headquarters of PNDS-Tarayya set on fire.
Verdict
The claim that the Nigerian Embassy in Niger has been set ablaze is rated False.
