CAIRO: A video widely circulated on social media claims a massive explosion at Cairo Airport in El-Salam City, Cairo, Egypt. Social media users, primarily Indians, claimed the incident occurred during a plane landing, with fears that around 2,000 people might be dead.
User Manoj Sharma posted the video on X with the caption “#Big Breaking #news || Cairo airport Salam city Accident during plane landing, 1500 people feared dead!!” The video clip was also shared on other social media platforms.
Fact Check
WE News investigated the viral footage and found the claim to be misleading. Contrary to the viral claim on social media, a reverse image search of keyframes from the viral video led to the same clip, featured in a Sky News report published on July 15, 2020, indicating the original video clip is older than alleged.
Sky News reported that 17 people were injured and up to 20 cars were incinerated after an oil pipeline explosion on a motorway in Cairo. The video was also uploaded on several YouTube channels, reporting a massive fire in Egypt’s Shuqair-Mostorod crude oil pipeline.
Another video capturing the same incident from a different angle surfaced on YouTube July 14, 2020 with title “An underground gas line exploded on the Cairo-Ismaila Desert Road.
Conclusion
Based on the WE News fact check, it is clear the video does not depict a plane crash in Egypt but rather a fire in a crude oil pipeline on Ismailia Road, Cairo, in July 2020. Therefore, the claim by social media users is misleading.
