On July 31, communal clashes erupted in Nepal’s southern Terai region after a dispute between Hindu and Muslim groups over loud music and religious flags during a Hindu procession.
Violence spread across parts of Sunsari and Siraha districts, prompting authorities to impose curfews. Police opened fire to disperse crowds, killing two people, while a third died during subsequent protests. Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah appealed for calm.
In the above context, a video is being widely shared on social media in which a massive fire can be seen engulfing a forested area. The footage shows thick smoke rising above treetops while some fire engines are trying to extinguish the fire.
The video is shared with a caption suggesting that it shows a village of Muslims being burnt in Nepal amid ongoing communal tensions in the country.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “The Ghazwa-e-Hind mindset nurtured by illegal infiltrators who sneaked into Nepal—entire villages burnt to ashes. No evidence left, no witnesses.”
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video is from July 29. It shows a forest fire in Turkey’s Muğla province.
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the same video was shared by the YouTube channel of Turkish media outlet TRT Haber on July 29. The video is shared with a caption suggesting that the video shows a forest fire breaking out in Seydikemer district of Muğla being tackled from both the air and the ground.
We found that the same video was also shared by a YouTube channel, NTV, on July 29. The video was shared with a caption that reads, “A fire that started in an agricultural area in the Seydikemer district of Muğla in the morning and spread to a forested area due to strong winds is still being fought from the air and land.”
Taking a hint, we searched with relevant keywords and found that the same video was shared by Turkiye Today on July 29.
According to the report, a fast-moving wildfire broke out in an agricultural area near Bayır in Türkiye’s Seydikemer district of Muğla province. Strong winds quickly pushed the flames into nearby forests, forcing evacuations and closing roads. Hundreds of firefighters, aircraft and helicopters were deployed. The fire was later brought under control, while authorities reported that more than 5,000 hectares across Seydikemer and nearby Fethiye were affected.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral claim is false.
