A Facebook (FB) page stitched together several clips and published it with false context claiming the footage shows the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war.
FB page B.Jr Gaming started a 3-and-a-half-hour long live stream on Feb. 28 that brandished a breaking news ticker which read: “Russia vs. Ukraine war start (sic).” It then showed various clips of long-range tanks and anti-air defense systems firing rockets and bullets at maneuvering fighter jets and warplanes.
The stream was titled, “Wow so Amazing Ukraine Air Defend (sic) system in action,” on FB.
The conflict in the live stream did not happen in real life. It was in the world of Arma 3, a video game that simulates realistic military warfare developed by the game developer Bohemia Interactive.
Several clips shown in the stream were from videos of the Youtube channel Compared Comparison which regularly uploads “modern and realistic cinematic war films” using the game engine of Arma 3, according to its about page.
All the clips were first uploaded in January 2021 and played on a loop by B.Jr Gaming.
A portion of the live stream was a screengrab from an eight-minute-long video showing a military simulation where a Phalanx close-in weapon system (CIWS) successfully gunned down a Mikoyan MiG-29 jet fighter aircraft.
Another video used was a three-minute gameplay of an anti-aircraft tank firing rockets at a Fairchild Republic A-10 “Warthog” Thunderbolt II fighter jet.
Also, part of the live stream was footage that ran for four-and-a-half minutes featuring a simulation of another Phalanx CIWS attempting to shoot down an A-10 Warthog aircraft.
The untrue FB post has since been viewed more than 3.4 million times and has garnered more than 68,000 reactions, 8,100 comments, and 13,000 shares.
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