A picture showing the aftermath of a cyclone that hit Myanmar in 2023 has been falsely linked to a deadly blast at a market in February 2024 in the Rakhine state — a region in western Myanmar where clashes have broken out between junta forces and rebel groups. The picture was published by local media outlets in Myanmar in May 2023 and showed the destruction caused by the storm.Â
“The scene of the damages and wounded people at Korean Seikkan (port) market in Sittwe as dogs shelled at the market,” reads an Arakanese-language post shared on Facebook on February 29, 2024.
The post also contains a picture showing people next to market stalls with damaged roofs and debris scattered on the street.
Social media users critical of the Myanmar junta often refer to government soldiers as “dogs”.
The claim circulated online shortly after an explosion killed a dozen civilians and wounded several on February 29 in Sittwe, Rakhine state’s capital city.
The Arakan Army (AA) said the blast was caused by shelling by a Myanmar junta vessel that “targeted the civilian population”, while the military blamed it on “careless heavy artillery shooting” by the AAÂ (archived link).
Founded in 2009, the AA has fought an on-off war for years seeking more autonomy for the state’s ethnic Rakhine population.
Clashes have rocked the state since the group attacked security forces in November, ending a ceasefire that has largely held since the junta’s 2021 coup.
The same image was also shared along with similar claims on Facebook here, here, here, here, and here.
However, the photo does not show the Sittwe market after the blast in 2024, but scenes of a coastal area in Rhakine in the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha in May 2023.
Photo from Cyclone Mocha
A reverse image search on Google found the photo was published here by the Irrawaddy magazine on May 15, 2023 in a report about the ground situation in the Rakhine state after Cyclone Mocha hit the area (archived link).
The Burmese-language caption of the photo in the report reads: “The scene of the central market in Sittwe after Cyclone Mocha made landfall”.
Below is a screengrab comparison between the image in the false post and the photo from Irrawaddy’s report:
The photo was also published in this report by pro-junta media about Cyclone Mocha in May 2023 (archived link).
Cyclone Mocha made landfall in southeastern Bangladesh and neighbouring Myanmar, packing winds of up to 195 kilometres (120 miles) per hour, setting records as the biggest storm to strike the Bay of Bengal in over a decade.
Myanmar junta authorities reported 145 casualties as a result of Cyclone Mocha.
AFP had previously debunked claims in Myanmar related to clashes between rebels and the military here and here.