Pro-Russian social media accounts have been widely sharing a video that they claim shows Ukrainian soldiers surrendering to the Russian army en masse. The video, however, actually shows a prisoner swap between the Russian state-funded paramilitary group, the Wagner Group, and the Ukrainian army in May 2023.
Social media posts claim a video depicts Ukrainian soldiers surrendering to the Russian army. This is false; the clip shows a prisoner exchange between Ukraine and Wagner mercenaries in late May 2023 near the city of Bakhmut.
Russia seeks to gain influence in Africa in several ways, from disinformation campaigns to sending Wagner Group mercenaries. Why is Africa so important to Vladimir Putin?
An "advertising poster" in the photo was faked. The press service of the
Ministry of National Defense of Poland, at the request of a StopFake
journalist, stated that none of their departments responsible for
recruiting candidates for the Polish Army is the author of this poster.
Yevgeny Prigozhin and his mercenary force launched a brief rebellion in Russia in June 2023.
Tweets claim a video shows a crowd joyfully reacting to the Wagner Group's short-lived mutiny in Russia. But the clip is old; it first circulated on Telegram in February 2023 and shows a private concert that a Russian online retailer organized for its staff.
BBC article: Introduction to the Wagner Group, in the wake of their failed coup attempt against Putin (24 June, 2023)
An introduction to the Wagner Group, with many links to high-quality sources.
NPR summarizes the status of the Wagner Group, a few days after their coup attempt against Putin (24 June, 2023).
The world held its breath as Wagner forces advanced on Moscow and their leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, seemed to challenge President Vladimir Putin. Many videos claim to show clashes between both sides, but not all are real.