Image shows fire at Moscow oil refinery, predates Russia's war in Ukraine
The image can be traced back to 2018 when it was shared in reports
(Reuters) - An image from 2018 of a fire at an oil refinery owned by Russia’s Gazprom Neft is being reshared online to falsely suggest it shows a blaze in 2023 at a Moscow factory that makes fighter jet engines.
“The Chernyshev factory in Moscow, which produces engines for MiG-29 fighter jets, has been in fire since this morning. How unfortunate…,” says a May 12 tweet sharing the image (here) (archive.is/ZkOv6).
The claim is also on Facebook (here).
However, Reuters traced the image back to November 2018 when it was shared in Russian reports about a fire at a Gazprom Neft oil refinery in Moscow’s Kapotnya district (here), (here), (here).
Reuters reported on the 2018 fire (here).
A Gazprom spokesperson did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
According to Russian news reports citing Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations, the May 12 fire happened in Moscow’s Pokrovskoye-Streshnevo district at a factory that produces MiG aircraft engines here), (here), (here).
VERDICT
Miscaptioned. The image can be traced back to 2018 when it was shared in reports about an oil refinery fire.