Fact Check: Videos of animals running loose on Paris streets make false claim about occurrence during recent protests in France
www.telugupost.com found that the videos of animals running on Paris streets are old and unrelated to ongoing protests in France.
Summary: www.telugupost.com found that the videos of animals running on Paris streets are old and unrelated to ongoing protests in France.
Videos of animals running loose on the streets of Paris are being shared on social media by netizens who claim that a zoo was forced open by rioters in order to create more havoc amidst recent strife in the city.
In the videos, zebras, horses and lions are seen on the streets alongside cars as spectators look on.
The viral video is being shared with the caption, "A Zoo in France has been forced open by rioters. Lions, Zebras and other animals were seen on the streets #FranceHasFallen #FranceRiots #ILLEGALimmigrants"
The video went viral on the internet following France witnessing clashes between the public and the police after the death of Nahel, a 17-year-old teenager who was allegedly killed by a French police officer during a traffic stop.
FACT CHECK:
Video of lions on streets:
We noticed the word 'Saint-Denis' written on top of the viral video, and found that it is the capital city of a French Island called Réunion. Upon performing a relevant keyword search, we found an old YouTube video from February 12, 2020, that matched the viral video. It was titled in French, "Lions roam in Saint-Denis at night without any surveillance".
https://www.youtube.com/
The same video was also posted on Twitter and Facebook in 2020 and mentions the location as Saint-Denis. The year of posting clearly indicates that the lions were not recently found on streets amidst the recent protest in Paris.
Video of zebra and horses on streets:
A reverse image search led to finding reports by India.com and NDTV from April 2020 carrying the same visuals.
According to their reports, the animals had allegedly escaped from a Badin circus in Ormesson-sur-Marne after the gate to their enclosure was left open. The incident took place amid the lockdown due to coronavirus. The zebra and the horses crossed the locality and reached Champigny-sur-Marne town which is located on the outskirts of Paris.
A similar report also shared by a French news outlet, Le Parisien, with the same narrative.
The year of posting clearly indicates that the zebras and horses were not recently found on streets amidst the recent protest.
Additionally, in response to a tweet that inquired whether any animals escaped the zoo during the ongoing protests, the Paris Zoological Park responded on July 3, by saying that all animals of Paris Zoological Park are fine and safe.
Although we could not independently verify the context of the videos, it is evident that these visuals took place years before the France protests.
Thus, the claim is false.