A video of an explosion has been repeatedly shared in Chinese-language social media posts that claim it shows London being hit by a missile in September.
But the claim is false. The clip shows a planned explosion on a film set in London, not a missile attack.
The video was shared on Douyin, a Chinese version of TikTok, on Sept. 5.
The 10-second video captures a building engulfed in flames, with smoke billowing out.
“The footage shows the aftermath of a surprise missile attack against London in the early morning of Sept. 1 – first such air attack against the U.K in 80 years,” the claim reads.
Many online users connected the claim of a missile attack in London to the Russian-Ukrainian war, sparking fears that it could herald World War III.
According to a 2022 report by The Independent, Andrey Gurulyov, a member of Vladimir Putin's United Russia party, stated on Russian state television that London would be the first NATO strategic target for Russian missiles if a conflict between NATO and Russia broke out.
In May 2023, the U.K. confirmed it would supply Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine to help repel Russian forces "in Ukraine."
A July report by the Chinese edition of Russia’s state-run media, Sputnik, cited the Kremlin criticizing the British decision as irresponsible.
But the claim about the missile attack in London is false.
A film set
A combined keyword search and reverse image search found the same clip shared in media reports, including the Evening Standard , Daily Mail and The Sun , and the BBC.
"A HUGE fire has erupted near The O2 after a planned explosion at a film set 'spread out of control' and sent black smoke into the sky," The Sun reported on Aug. 31.
The O2 is a multi-purpose indoor arena in southeast London.
"The controlled explosion was right on the river's edge at a Silvertown commercial site with locals nearby catching it on video and hearing loud cracks," The Sun reported.
Translated by Shen Ke. Edited by Shen Ke and Taejun Kang.
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