Amid the Russia-Ukraine war, several videos have been spiraling on the internet. While some depict courage or humanity, others display acts of hatred and malevolence. 

Recently, a video of a group of soldiers mercilessly beating and firing at the elderly has been going viral on the internet. The video has stirred up strong emotions, as many internet users believe that the video displays soldiers of the Ukrainian army killing civilians of Chechnya during the Chechen war. Several people from Chechnya are now willing to join hands with the Russian troops to seek vengeance.

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Contrary to popular belief, the video is a snippet from ‘The Search’, a film based on the Chechen war. The man in the video is Maxim Zapkosni, a Ukrainian actor who portrayed the role of a Russian soldier in the film.

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According to Teyit, a Turkish fact-checking website, the scene appears at the 3:40 mark in the film.

Released in 2014, ‘The Search’ is a French drama film directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Michel Hazanavicius.

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The plot of the film revolves around a French woman who works for an NGO. The woman gradually develops a bond with a lost boy in war-hit Chechnya during the year 1999. 

Uploading the video on Twitter, one user falsely claimed, “This is what the Russian and Ukrainian army did when they entered Chechnya They executed an old man and his wife.”

Reacting to the false claim, one user stated, “I have seen a moment earlier that’s a clip from a french movie, so it’s fake! shame on you who put that clip and showed like it really happened!”

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Another user falsely claimed, “This is what the Ukrainian army did when they entered the land of Chechnya and executed an old man who was reading Surat Al-Fatihah with his wife without mercy & today the verse is reversed & Chechnya enters with the Russian army to take revenge on what the Ukrainians did to them.”

According to Teyit, similar rumours arose after the film was released in 2014.