Bangkok has rejected “baseless” accusations from Cambodia that it used chemical weapons in the course of the Southeast Asian neighbours’ worst army battle in additional than a decade. Nonetheless, social media customers have falsely claimed an outdated video of jets releasing colored smoke exhibits the Thai military deploying deadly gases over Cambodia. The clip was actually taken in Malaysia’s Langkawi throughout a world airshow.
“Thailand used poisonous fumes on its territory. Cambodia has severely affected the lives of Cambodian residents. This can be a genocide in opposition to humanity and a violation of worldwide legislation,” reads textual content over a TikTok video shared on July 28, 2025.
The caption repeats the identical declare, crediting it to Cambodia’s Ministry of Nationwide Protection.
The 5 second video was considered greater than 3,600 occasions and exhibits three jets releasing crimson and blue smoke mid-flight.
Screenshot of the falsely shared clip, with a crimson X added by AFP
The video surfaced elsewhere on Fb and X forward of a truce between Thailand and Cambodia on July 29 that halted five-days of army clashes, triggered by a long-standing dispute over their 800-kilometre (500 mile) border (archived hyperlink).
No less than 43 folks have been killed on either side and over 300,000 have been pushed from their properties.
Previous to peace talks on July 27, Cambodia accused Thailand of utilizing chemical weapons in opposition to its residents, a declare Bangkok has denied and referred to as “baseless” (archived hyperlinks right here and right here).
The circulating video, in the meantime, is unrelated to the battle — it was taken throughout a Malaysian airshow in 2023 and shared on-line in Might 2025.
A reverse picture search on Google utilizing keyframes from the false publish discovered an extended, uncropped model of the video on TikTok on Might 24, 2025, captioned “#limalangkawi” (archived hyperlink).
Screenshot comparability of the false publish (left) and the unique TikTok video (proper)
The consumer, who goes by @zainalabidinhassanal, instructed AFP on August 6 that the video was taken in the course of the biennial Langkawi Worldwide Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA) in 2023.
The occasion takes place on the Mahsuri Worldwide Exhibition Centre subsequent to Langkawi Worldwide Airport, situated in an archipelago off the northern coast of Malaysia.
The identical consumer posted one other video from the airshow on Might 23, 2025, which options scenes comparable to Google Maps Avenue View imagery of the exhibition centre (archived hyperlinks right here and right here).
Screenshot comparisons of the Might 23 video (left) and Google Avenue View imagery (proper), with corresponding components highlighted by AFP
AFP has additionally debunked different misinformation associated to the battle between Thailand and Cambodia.
