Viral white flag video from 2019 falsely shared as Indian Army surrender

A video in which men in uniforms wave a white flag has made rounds on social media again, being attributed as that of Indian soldiers surrendering during recent tensions at the border. Fact-checks have, however, ascertained that the video is old, from 2019 and contains Pakistani soldiers.

The video, extensively shared after India’s alleged military action against Pakistan under Operation Sindoor, has been circulated with false descriptions against the backdrop of escalating nationalism and cyber propaganda.

The video itself, in fact, dates from September 2019, when Pakistani troops were waving white flags to recover bodies of their soldiers martyred by Indian troops following an alleged unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan.

A video shared by the government mouthpiece and news agency Asian News International (ANI) in 2019 debunks the false claim.

What occurred in 2019?

The encounter occurred days after India had thwarted an attempt by Pakistan’s Border Action Team (BAT) to infiltrate. Five to seven Pakistani intruders were reported dead by official Indian reports at the time. The bodies could not be recovered by the Pakistani troops following their failure amid intense Indian fire. The Pakistani troops then requested a ceasefire to recover the remains by waving a white flag. This practice is also as per international protocols since the white flag is a time-honoured symbol of non-aggression or truce.

Misuse of old white flag video

The clip is now being misconstrued and taken out of context and misrepresented as an Indian army surrender to Pakistan, particularly in the aftermath of India’s military preparedness in the recent firings.

Social media users and news readers have been warned against peddling fake news and are encouraged to check content before posting. Platforms have been requested to remove misleading posts identified as false by independent fact-checkers.

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