CLAIM: A viral photo shows corpses of traders killed in the Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State.
VERDICT: Misleading!
FULL TEXT
Penultimate Thursday, news broke of an attack on a popular market in the Madaka community of Rafi LGA in Niger State. According to reports, an unspecified number of traders and customers were killed.
The attack happened two days after bandits were said to have attacked another community, Pangu Gari, during which they killed the district head and four other people.
Following the attack, this picture started circulating purportedly depicting those killed in the attack. The picture appeared here and here, both on X with thousands of likes and reports.
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VERIFICATION
Ripples Nigeria subjected the picture to a reverse image search and found that the picture is old and has been recycled multiple times with different claims
An old version of the same picture was posted on X in 2021. The caption reads, “Classrooms become mutuary in Zamfara”. Another version appeared in a March 2022 post on Facebook, claiming that the incident happened in Katsina State.
CONCLUSION
The claim that the viral picture is that of an attack on traders in Niger state is false. The picture is a recycled one whose source is unclear.
By: Oluwatobi Odeyinka