Claim 1: TTP militants staged a video at an abandoned US checkpoint in Spin Boldak, Afghanistan, falsely claiming they captured a checkpoint in Bajaur, Pakistan.
Claim 2: In their capture of the checkpoint, TTP militants took over a significant area of Bajaur and 13 personnel from the Pakistan army were martyred.
Fact 1: The video is not staged. It actually shows Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants capturing an abandoned checkpoint of the Pakistan army in Mullasaid, Salarzai, in the Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Fact 2: TTP militants did not take over a significant area of Bajaur and no personnel from the Pakistan army were martyred.
On the dates of 30 and 31 December 2024, users on X shared videos of TTP militants taking control of what appeared to be a checkpoint. According to the captions of the posts, the militants captured a checkpoint of the Pakistani army in Bajaur district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
However, another post on X from 30 December claimed that the video where a militant is at the top of the pole with a flag does not show Bajaur but Afghanistan. The post added that the video was staged by the TTP as propaganda. A screenshot of the video in question is shown below:
Source: X
According to the post, the video shows militants capturing an abandoned US checkpoint in Spin Boldak instead. The caption of the post stated that “the barren landscape shown in the video starkly contrasts with Malasaid’s lush green terrain”, thereby proving that it does not show the Bajaur area.
A similar post on X from 30 December also showed a picture of the militant atop a pole. It claimed that videos showing TTP militants capturing a checkpost in Bajaur were fake, as the video showed a rocky terrain not native to the area.
We also came across posts on X that made further claims about the actual incident. The first category of posts claimed that the militants had taken over a certain area of Bajaur. One post claimed that the militants had taken control of a “significant portion of the region [Salarzai area of Bajaur]”. Another described the event as “Visual confirmation of (sic) fall of Bajaur to TTP”. The second category of posts added that 13 Pakistani army personnel were killed in the process of the checkpoint being captured. These posts can be seen here, here, here, here, and here.
Fact or Fiction?
Posts claiming the checkpoint was in Spin Boldak, Afghanistan
Soch Fact Check first conducted a reverse-image search of the keyframes of the video showing a militant hoisting a flag atop a pole. This led us to numerous posts on X with this video and captions stating that TTP militants had captured a Pakistani military checkpost in Salarzai (part of the Bajaur district), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
More videos of the militants were shared by users. One shows militants dancing at the checkpoint in celebration. Another shows a militant at the top of a pole, hoisting a flag. This video is also a compilation, first showing the militants at the top of the checkpoint, followed by them chanting at the top, which then cuts to the militant going downhill, and finally shows a rifle, behind which a militant is climbing the pole to hoist the flag.
Then, conducting a keyword search on Google for “TTP Bajaur”, Soch Fact Check found a post on Facebook from 31 December by The Times of India. The post’s caption stated:
“#Pakistan confirms #TTP overran ‘abandoned’ military outpost in #Bajaur district of #KhyberPakhtunkhwa”
The video shared in the post is a compilation of the videos of militants capturing the checkpost that were shared on X between 30 and 31 December. However, while it does not specifically show the clip of the man atop a pole with a flag, the pole itself can be seen in the background. The pale brickwork of the checkpoint and the dark brown mountain behind the pole, seen in the video in the claim, are also visible below:
Source: Facebook
Source: Facebook
Moreover, in the video in the claim, the white flag clearly has a black circle in the middle with inscription in black below. This is the same flag that the militants are seen dancing with in the video by Times of India. A comparison of the two videos’ keyframes is shown below:
The embedded captions within the video by Times of India stated that a Pakistani security official had spoken to The Khorasan Diary and confirmed the authenticity of the viral videos. The Khorasan Diary is a “non-partisan platform that provides real-time information and analysis” about developments, particularly in conflict zones.
Soch Fact Check spoke to Nawab Ali Khattak, Director Projects and Partnerships at The Khorasan Diary. Khattak confirmed that this event took place in Mullasaid, Salarzai, which lies in the Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Posts claiming TTP captured Bajaur and killed Pakistan army personnel
Regarding the claim that the TTP had taken over a significant area of Bajaur, Khattak stated that while the TTP does maintain a presence in Bajaur, they had not taken over the area. He added that describing this event as the “fall of Bajaur” was exaggerated.
Moreover, regarding the claim that Pakistani army personnel were killed in the process of the checkpoint being captured, Khattak stated that this was false. The Pakistani army had already vacated the checkpoint before the militants captured it, according to a senior Pakistan security official who spoke to The Khorasan Diary. When asked about the current status of the checkpoint, Khattak added that it has since been vacated by the militants as well.
Virality
Posts on X claiming the checkpoint was captured in Afghanistan can be found here, here, here, here, and here.
Posts on X claiming that Pakistani army personnel died in the capture of the checkpoint can be found here, here, here, here, and here.
Posts on X claiming that TTP militants took over significant portions of Bajaur can be found here and here.
Conclusion: A video in fact shows TTP militants capturing a vacated checkpost of the Pakistani army in Mullasaid, Salarzai, in the Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is not from Afghanistan. Moreover, TTP militants have not captured a significant area of the district, and no Pakistani military personnel were killed.
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Background image in cover photo: The Jamestown Foundation
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