ALBAWABA - A video has gained millions of views, claiming to show a coup in France and allegedly saying that French President Emmanuel Macron and his government were overthrown.
The clip, which was first posted on Facebook, allegedly showed a reporter from the channel "Live 24" claiming that Macron and his government had collapsed. According to
The reporter said, "At the present moment, unofficial information indeed suggests that a coup is underway in France – led by a colonel whose identity has not been revealed – and French President Emmanuel Macron may have been deposed."
Video of a coup in France goes viral. What’s happening?
In the clip, a journalist is seen standing near Paris' famous Eiffel Tower, while police lights are spotted in the background; in addition, a helicopter is flying overhead. The video also showed an armed soldier, and behind the reporter, a group of people who were seen trying to get a glimpse of what was going on behind the police cordons.
The footage, which mainly spread through French accounts on social media, has gained over 13 million views, and it was uploaded by a user under the name "ISLAM".
The clip caught the attention of one of the African leaders, who immediately called Macron to know what was happening in his country on Sunday. The French president told him that this was fake news and the video was generated using artificial intelligence (AI).
According to French media, the channel doesn't exist in real life, and the reporter is fake.
Despite Macron's complaint to Meta that the video is AI-generated, the video was not removed, but it shows a warning that "this content may have been digitally created or altered to seem real." However, the video was taken down from Facebook on Wednesday.
