A video of group of people involved in a brawl in the street infront of a supermarket which was ablaze is being widely shared on social media. It is being claimed that Muslim radicals have burnt down a Hindu Temple in Birmingham and are openly attacking the Hindus, and that the video related to that incident. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Visuals of Muslims attacking Hindus in Birmingham, UK after setting fire to a Hindu Temple.
Fact: According to the West Midlands Police and media reports, the video shows a fire at Birmingham on 19 September which was caused accidentally when a rubbish fire spread to the building. Also, the fight was related to a parking issue near the supermarket and was an isolated incident. Moreover, there were no temples at the site of fire accident. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
We searched the internet with the relevant keywords and found news reports by BBC, DailyMail, BirminghamMail.
According to these reports, a fire broke out at Zeenat Supermarket in Alum Rock Road on 19 September 2022. Fire engines were called to douse the fire. Meanwhile, some people started to fight in the street in front of the store. The fight reportedly broke when a driver refused to move his car as the fire broke.
As the rumours about Hindu temple being burnt went viral, West Midlands Police clarified that the video shows the fire at a supermarket in Birmingham on 19 September 2022, which was caused accidentally when a rubbish fire spread to the building. The fight was connected to a parking issue, and it was an isolated incident. The tweets can be seen here and here.
The west Midlands Fire department also reported the same. Moreover, there were no temples surrounding the fire accident spot.
To sum it up, an unrelated isolated incident at Birmingham is shared with a false communal narrative.
