Video of market fire misrepresented as blast at Somalia intelligence agency

James OKONG'O / AFP Kenya
·2 min read

A fire broke out in a section of Mogadishu’s Bakara market on March 10, 2024. Soon after, a clip surfaced online, claiming to show the offices of Somalia's National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) on fire after a militant group attacked it. However, the video shows the blaze at the Bakara market and not the NISA building. When contacted for clarification, NISA confirmed to AFP Fact Check that their offices were not attacked nor set on fire.

The video has been shared more than 1,500 times on X since it was posted on March 10, 2024.

<span>Screenshot showing the false post </span>
Screenshot showing the false post

“This is Mogadishu, the failed Federal Government of #Somalia's  Intelligence headquarter are under attack, al-Shabaab terror group linked Alqaeda able to launch surprise attacks to the heavy guarded office of NISA (sic),” reads part of the post.

The accompanying video features a white multi-storey building complex engulfed in fire, releasing a dark smoke plume.

The video was also shared elsewhere on X here and here.

Al-Shabaab is an Islamist militant group based in Somalia and active in East Africa.

The Al-Qaeda affiliated group carries out frequent attacks including bombings in densely populated areas across the country (archived here). Al-Shabaab was formed in Somalia during a period of anarchy after the 1991 civil war. Once in control of Mogadishu, the group was eventually pushed out of the city by an African Union-led force.

It has continued to fight against the federal government of Somalia and the peacekeeping mission mandated by the African Union.

But the claim that the video shows the offices of Somalia’s intelligence agency on fire after an Al-Shabaab attack is false.

Market fire

Through a reverse image search on a screenshot from the clip, we found that it shows the Bakara market inferno in Mogadishu on March 10, 2024.

Somali National News Agency (SNNA) published a news report about the incident on its website (archived here). The article features an image showing the burning building complex.

A comparison of the image shared on social media and photos in the SNNA report reveals matching buildings.

<span>A side-by-side comparison of a screenshot from the social media clip (left) and the image from the SNNA report (right) </span>
A side-by-side comparison of a screenshot from the social media clip (left) and the image from the SNNA report (right)

SNNA told AFP Fact Check that “the clip shows the March 10 Bakara market fire that destroyed several shops”.

Online digital news outlets from Somalia and neighbouring Kenya also published news reports about the Bakara market fire using the clip shared on social media (archived here and here).

When contacted for clarification, NISA confirmed to AFP Fact Check that their offices were not attacked nor set on fire.