In March 2025, shortly after demonstrations began in Turkey, videos allegedly showing thousands of protesters on the streets of Istanbul and other cities circulated online. We have checked the correctness of such publications.
On March 19, Turkish police detained Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and dozens of his associates, sparking large demonstrations across the country. Many media outlets and Telegram channels illustrated their notes on this topic with videos allegedly filmed during such actions. In particular, in one video, thousands of people accompany cars passing along the road, and in another, a crowd filled the square and the streets nearby. Many publications specify that the videos were filmed in the first hours after news of Imamoglu’s detention appeared.
Either one or both videos with similar captions were published by Telegram channels Mash (1.1 million views at the time of writing this analysis), “Live broadcast • news"(833,000), "Caution news" (517,000), "Context"(270,000), "Evil proof️"(223,000), "#Montan!"(223,000), "Istanbul wolf"(210,000), "Truthfulness"(175,000), "What happened?"(83,000), etc., as well as some Russian media (for example, "Moika 78" And "E1.ru»).
Ekrem Imamoglu - Mayor of Istanbul and key opponent of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. March 19th arrested on charges of corruption and links to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, which Turkish authorities consider a terrorist organization. The detention occurred a few days before the congress of the opposition Republican People's Party, where Imamoglu nevertheless elected presidential candidate in the 2028 elections.
Politician's arrest provoked mass demonstrations throughout the country, in which tens of thousands of people took part. Stock accompanied clashes with police, the use of tear gas and water cannons, and the detention of demonstrators and journalists. Politico reportedthat the social network X, amid protests, has limited access to the accounts of opposition politicians and activists in Turkey.
When covering such demonstrations, the media actively use photos and videos from the scene. Professional journalists rely on while on the footage, removed local reporters or correspondents from the world's largest agencies. However, some media outlets, in pursuit of efficiency, often do not wait for pictures and videos of their colleagues, turning to social networks for illustrative material.
Bus video
One of the videos that went viral shows a crowd of people accompanying a convoy of buses and cars. Lasting 28 sec. The video was filmed in the dark from a certain hill. Although the video is of low quality, it does not contain Turkish flags or portraits of Imamoglu, which would indicate that it was filmed during recent protests. Moreover, the alleged demonstrators are dressed predominantly in white clothes.
A Google reverse search revealed that this video was first published September 11, 2024, about six months before the start of protests in Turkey. Then this video was shared on TikTok by a user with the username @rey.marques, adding, in particular, the hashtags #timor and #pausfransiskus (#Timor and #PopeFrancis, respectively).
Shortly before the blogger's post in East Timor arrived Pope Francis. On September 9, 2024, he celebrated mass in the capital of the country, Dili. About 600,000 people gathered for it, more than 40% of the total population. It is believed that this mass was the largest in history in terms of the ratio of the number of its participants to the population of the state where it took place. In total, Catholicism is professed by about 95% of the residents of East Timor; according to this indicator, the country takes one of the first places in the world.
The quality of the original video is much higher, which allows you to see the details. For example, about halfway through the video you can see banners on the wall along which the crowd is located. They are very reminiscent of banners with a portrait of the Pope, which hit through the lenses of the media filming Francis's visit to East Timor. In footage from reports from Reuters and the Associated Press, people, like those in the viral video, are dressed predominantly in white.
After the conclusion of the Mass, Pope Francis passed through the streets of evening Dili in his car, greeting those gathered. People lined the roads to see off the pontiff and ask for his blessing. It was these events that were captured by the user who subsequently posted the video on TikTok.
This is not the first time this video has been circulated in the wrong context. So, in October 2024, some Indian Internet users claimed, that the video shows a Muslim procession in Mumbai. In September of the same year appeared posts that the recording allegedly captured a rally in support of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. And in March 2025, almost simultaneously with the protests in Turkey, the same video issued for demonstrations in Delhi.
On the evening of March 19, against the backdrop of rallies that began in Turkey, this video again became popular (and again with incorrect captions). It initially went viral on social media. X, where similar publications are in different languages dialed tens thousand views. Posts stating that the events in the video are unfolding in Turkey also appeared in Instagram, Facebook, and subsequently in Russian-speaking Telegram channels.
Thus, these images are in no way connected with the protests in Turkey. The video was filmed in September 2024 during the Pope's visit to East Timor.
Video of protesters in the square
The author of another video, which became viral after the start of protests in Turkey, captured a crowd in a certain square and people coming there from nearby streets. Users who distributed this video claim that it was filmed in Istanbul on March 19, immediately after Imamoglu’s arrest. The video lasts only 8 seconds, and, as in the first case, it is difficult to see the details.
A reverse image search revealed that the first posts with this video appeared three months before the arrest of the Istanbul mayor. The earliest publication that "Verified" could be found was done on social network X by user with the username @theonlyone_mile on December 22 at 19:20 Moscow time. There are no geotags or comments in the post about where the video was filmed.
However, those who reposted this video write that the events are unfolding in Belgrade. Among these users is a journalist Andela Milivojevic. According to her, the video shows a demonstration against Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Mass protests in this country continue since November, when a canopy collapsed at the Novi Sad railway station killed 15 people (one more injured died in the hospital in March).
A large rally in Belgrade on December 22, 2024 was reported as Serbian, so international Media. In their materials they used footage similar to the viral video, noting that it was filmed at Slavia Square. The rally from another angle hit through the lens of the AFP agency, whose journalists also filmed a report from the scene.
The earliest publication linking this video to the protests in Turkey that could be found was "Verified" appeared On March 19 at 20:15 Moscow time on the social network X. User @IYI1INSAN_ accompanied the video with hashtags in Turkish: “to the street”, “government resign”, “Ekrem Imamoglu”, etc. This post received 1.2 million views. Subsequently, the video was distributed in other languages in X, Instagram and on Reddit, and also attracted the attention of Russian speakers Telegram channels And Media.
Therefore, this video also has nothing to do with the protests in Turkey. It was filmed in December 2024, during anti-government demonstrations in Serbia.
Cover photo: social networks
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