The Defence Headquarters on Thursday night dismissed a viral video circulating on social media, which purportedly shows terrorists overrunning a military base in Marte, Borno State, and killing soldiers.

According to the DHQ, the video is part of a disinformation campaign and is unrelated to the recent incident in Marte.

The footage, they clarified, originated from a different location and was first posted online on December 7, 2020.

Major General Markus Kangye, Director of Defence Media Operations, explained that the video was subjected to forensic analysis and determined to be fake.

He stated, “The attention of the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) has been drawn to a video currently circulating on social media, falsely presented as footage from the recent attack on troops in Marte, Borno State.”

“Following a thorough analysis by relevant authorities, it has been confirmed that the video is not related to the Marte incident in any form.”

“The visual content, terrain, and operational context clearly indicate that the footage is from an occurrence at a different location which was first posted on 7 December 2020.”

Major General Kangye added that the video is being recycled and manipulated by criminal elements and sympathisers of terrorist groups with the intent to mislead the public and create panic. He said this effort was designed to undermine public confidence in the military’s operations.

He explained, “The video clip is being deliberately recycled and manipulated by criminal elements and sympathisers of terrorist groups to mislead the public and sow seed of fear, while aiming at dissuading the public from the gains being recorded by troops of the AFN in the ongoing operations across the country.”

Providing context to the actual event, he said, “For the avoidance of doubt, troops of AFN in Marte came under attack on Monday 12 May 2025 at about 0300hrs (3 am).”

“However, the troops were able to repel the terrorists after a fierce gun battle, with a large number of terrorists neutralized while others escaped with bullet wounds.”

“Following this, the terrorists resorted to sharing an old clip as propaganda to mislead gullible members of the public.”

The DHQ strongly condemned the spread of the false video and reassured Nigerians of the military’s resolve.

“This act of misinformation is not only malicious but also a failed attempt to demoralize our gallant troops and undermine the confidence of Nigerians in the Armed Forces.”

“The AFN condemns in the strongest terms this reckless dissemination of fake content and warns that those behind such disinformation campaigns will be identified and held accountable in accordance with the law.”

Major General Kangye concluded by reaffirming the military’s commitment: “The Nigerian military remains fully committed and unwavering in its efforts at defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our nation. Our troops in the North East and across all theatres of operations remain resolute and are making significant progress in dismantling terrorist networks.”