Amid ongoing tensions, where tribal communities in Tripura have reportedly raised concerns about illegal Bangladeshi residents, a video (here and here) has gone viral on social media. It shows two groups clashing with bows and arrows and is being shared with the claim that Tripura tribals are attacking Bangladeshi infiltrators. Let’s find out the truth behind this video.
Claim: The viral video shows tribal people in Tripura attacking Bangladeshi infiltrators with bows and arrows.
Fact: The video is actually from a political clash in the Intan Jaya district of Central Papua, Indonesia, in December 2024. It involved supporters of rival candidates in local elections, not any incident related to Tripura or Bangladeshi infiltrators. Hence the claim is FASLE.
To verify the truth, we performed a reverse image search on Google, which led us to the same video uploaded on a YouTube channel Tribune Papua, from Indonesia on 12 December 2024. The caption, written in Indonesian, read “TENSE! War Between Supporters of Intan Jaya Regency Pilkada Candidates,” indicating that the video is around five months old and relates to a political clash in Indonesia, not from India.
Another result led us to the same video shared by the Indonesian local outlet Kabar Terdepan on Instagram on 13 December 2024. According to the post, thousands of supporters of Pilkada candidates clashed in Intan Jaya District, Central Papua Province, on 8 December 2024. The clash took place in Sugapa District between the supporters of former first-ranked candidate pair Aner Maisini–Elias Igapa and former third-ranked candidate pair Apolos Bagau–Tetairus Widigipa. The post also mentioned that four kiosks were burned during the violence.
Further research led us to several news reports from local Indonesian outlets (here, here and here). According to these reports, two groups of supporters of rival candidate pairs in the Intan Jaya regional elections, Central Papua, clashed violently in Sugapa District on 8 December 2024. The clash, which involved the use of arrows, machetes, catapults, and stones, resulted in multiple injuries and the burning of kiosks. Papua Police Public Relations Head confirmed that the violence broke out between supporters of candidate pair number 1 (Aner Maisini–Elias Igapa) and candidate pair number 3 (Apolos Bagau–Tetairus Widigipa). Several injured individuals were airlifted to Nabire for medical treatment. Intan Jaya Police Chief Subekti Wibowo stated that nearly 1,000 people were involved, and the situation was brought under control with the intervention of police and the TNI/ODC Task Force.
To sum up, a video of a political clash from Indonesia is being falsely shared as one showing Tripura tribals attacking Bangladeshi infiltrators.
