Accounts on social media circulated a report claiming that unknown gunmen targeted a mine-sweeper belonging to the Syrian Ministry of Defense near the town of Qara in Rif Dimashq, injuring two personnel and disabling the vehicle.
The fact-checking team ran a keyword search related to the incident, reviewed statements issued by official bodies, and compared the circulating accounts with documented information, establishing that the mine-sweeper was not disabled by an attack from unknown gunmen but by a landmine that detonated while the Military Engineering Directorate was carrying out a demining task in the Qara area of Rif Dimashq, causing the vehicle driver an amputation injury and disabling the sweeper.
Why is this claim misleading?
Distorting the content: The cause of the incident was distorted, presenting a landmine explosion during an engineering demining operation as an attack carried out by unknown gunmen, which changes the nature and context of the event.
