A video clip is being shared on social media with a caption claiming that it shows Thai people staging an evacuation to bomb shelters during the conflict along the Thai-Cambodian border.
According to Thai PBS Verify, which reviews and screens news for veracity to reduce the spread of fake news, the video is not recent and the events depicted did not take place along the disputed border. It is an old clip which previously circulated online.
Old clip from July 1st, 2025
Verification, using keywords and the account name in the clip, matched a video previously posted on the Facebook page of an indigenous Karen rapper.
The video was first uploaded on July 1st, 2025, and shared again on July 27th, 2025.
In the video, people are speaking the Karen Pga K’nyaw language, commonly used by the Karen ethnic group. The footage predates the recent clashes between Thailand and Cambodia, which began on July 24th, 2025, severely impacting residents, especially in the area of Prasat Ta Muen Thom in Phanom Dong Rak District of Surin province.
Consequently, Surin Governor Chamnan Chuentha urged residents in the district to take shelter in nearby bunkers and to prepare for possible evacuation to temporary shelters.
The clip, which falsely claimed to show Thai people staging a refugee scene in a bunker, was in fact recorded and published online before the conflict and before the evacuation order was issued along the Thai-Cambodian border.
A screenshot from the X application shows a post claiming that Thailand staged people in bomb shelters.
Disinformation from X account
A foreign user on X posted a message and the clip, claiming that Thailand was staging scenes of people taking cover in a bomb shelter during the conflict on the Thai-Cambodian border. The post received about 1,700 reposts and 1,600 likes.
The message reads:
Thailand’s people are skilled in storytelling and entertaining the world. Just observe them playing the role of the victim.
Left: An image shared on X claiming Thailand staged a bomb shelter evacuation. Right: A screenshot from a Facebook video previously posted on July 1, 2025
The consequences of disinformation
Widespread misunderstanding:
The post caused significant confusion among viewers, especially those who did not verify the source. The thousands of reposts and likes on the X platform contributed to the rapid spread of this distorted information.
Damaging Thailand’s credibility on the international stage:
The claim, written in English and accompanied by border-related hashtags, led some foreigners, unfamiliar with the context, to mistakenly believe that Thailand was staging events or distorting facts.
Potential to affect peace and international relations:
The implication that Thailand initiated the conflict or fabricated a false image to gain sympathy could lead to misunderstandings between nations and escalate tensions in the border region.
Left: A screenshot from a Facebook post, originally published on July 1, 2068, with the caption, “Behind the scene.” Right: A screenshot from an X post that was shared along with the claim that Thailand staged a shelter evacuation for its citizens.
