On 07 May 2021, a Facebook post by the name በለሳ TV (a Facebook page with 47,000 followers) shared an image that shows soldiers and an explosion with the claim that Sudanese army troops have penetrated and entered west Gondar while controlling new territories. The text written in Tigrinya reads, “Sudanese news outlets have reported that the Sudanese army has entered into west Gondar and controlled new territories…” However, HaqCheck has interrogated the claim and confirmed that the images below don’t show the Sudanese army entering and controlling new territories in Western Gondar. Therefore, HaqCheck has rendered the post as FALSE due to an inaccurate image to support the claim.
There have been armed clashes around the Ethio-Sudanese border since November 2020. The Sudanese Armed Forces stated that they reclaimed territory in the Salam Bir and Mahaj areas in El Gedaref from the Ethiopian army and armed militias. On 31 December 2020, Omar Qamareddine, Sudanese foreign minister, declared restoration and full control over all territories along the Ethio-Sudanese border taken over by Ethiopian farmers. The countries have been in talks and negotiations to settle the issue and demarcate the boundary despite being in vain. Recently, Sudan has accepted an offer by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to mediate with Ethiopia over the contested territories.
In this context, the image was shared claiming the Sudanese army has marched and controlled new territories in west Gondar. However, a reverse image search of the Facebook post’s pictures doesn’t prove the claim. The first image was taken from an article written in French and it shows Sudanese army troops waving the Sudanese flag in May 2014. The second image was taken from a Facebook post written in Arabic in March 2017. The original post of the second image can be found with the following link.
Indeed there have been armed conflicts along with the border areas between Ethiopian and Sudanese forces. However, HaqCheck has interrogated the claim and confirmed that the images below don’t show the Sudanese army marching and controlling new territories in western Gondar, therefore, rendering the post, FALSE due to the usage of an inaccurate image to support the claim.
Fact Checked by: Hagos Gebreamlak
Edited by: Eden Tafesework
This article is part of HaqCheck, Addis Zeybe’s multilingual fact-checking initiative, run by its R&D Department.
