Protest of climate activists shared as namaz of Muslims

This video from Paris depicts climate activists protesting the government’s inaction on climate change and being forcefully removed for blocking traffic.

A video showing a group of people wearing reflective vests sitting in the middle of the road, blocking the traffic being dragged away by some people has gone viral on social media. The users who shared the video claimed that people in France forcibly removed Muslims who were praying in the middle of the road.

The caption of the video states, “Muslims are doing namaz on road in France. a body builder throws all from the road. We also do the the same in New bharat”

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Fact Check- 

We started our investigation by a reverse image search on Google with the key frames of the video and results led us to the report published by Daily Express that contained the same video on December 2.

According to the report “Furious Parisian drivers brutally dragged climate activists off the road on the Levallois bridge in Levallois-Perret, Paris. The protesters had brought traffic to a standstill, prompting the ire of the drivers. The driver was quickly joined by other commuters who took the matter into their own hands”.

 The video shows drivers in Paris dragging climate activists off the road on the Levallois bridge in Levallois-Perret.The activist group was identified as “Dernière Rénovation” (Last Renovation) and they were reportedly demanding thermal renovation of buildings in Paris. 

Daily Express

A subsequent search turned up reports about the incident, including the same video. The Daily Sabah’s verified Instagram account posted the same video with a description. “Drivers try to remove climate activists shutting down roads in France as an act of civil disobedience to raise awareness about the issue. Angry drivers got out of their cars to violently remove climate activists, who have been blocking traffic for their cause”.

Conclusion-

Fact Crescendo found the claim made along with the viral video to be False. The viral video does not show Muslims in France being dragged off the road for blocking traffic while performing namaz. This video from Paris depicts climate activists protesting the government’s inaction on climate change.