Another conspiracy theory that has no factual basis is spreading online. A number of geological experts explain that the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria was caused by the collision of two tectonic plates, the Anatolian and Arabian. No human actions could have provoked a catastrophe of this magnitude.
After the horrific earthquake in Turkey, Insight News published an article about how Turkey was becoming another victim of Russian propaganda. Then we wrote about campaigns to discredit Ukrainian refugees. These subversive information operations are typical for all European countries where millions of Ukrainians fleeing Russian aggression have been forced to leave.
We also warned that the terrible earthquake would not go unnoticed by Russian propaganda. Any social tension, any crisis caused by the disaster will be used by Russia to its advantage. So we will soon see what the next steps will be.
Indeed, we did not have to wait long.
Social media users and conspiracy theorists are spreading yet another conspiracy theory that Western countries, namely the United States and NATO, are allegedly behind the earthquake in Turkey.
“The earthquake in Turkey, which has become an inconvenient partner for the West, happened at a very good time and hit the provinces with the most difficult ethnic situation. It is likely to distract Turkey from foreign policy issues for a long time and is already being used in full force by the Turkish opposition, which is “rocking the boat” with the help of overseas friends who dream of replacing Erdogan with someone more compliant,” one of the Russian resources states.
In addition, conspiracy theorists claim that the weapon that allegedly caused the earthquake is the American HAARP complex located in Alaska. Russian propaganda outlets are actively spreading this conspiracy theory, adding that “Americans are not just no longer trusted in most countries, they are increasingly suspected a priori of all suspicious phenomena and disasters.”
For example, the Telegram channel of Russian propagandist of German descent Alina Lipp, whom we previously reported on, also joined a coordinated information campaign in Germany, where a large Turkish diaspora lives.
The post hints that the US “punished” Turkey with the earthquake for blocking Sweden’s accession to NATO.
“Turkey’s statement:
There are no accidents, and we told the American ambassador that.
A week ago, we did not agree to increase NATO membership, and a week later we got a catastrophic earthquake….
We know who did it and how.
Take your dirty hands off Turkey.
We will draw conclusions.
However, this whole theory is completely unfounded and is only used by Russian propaganda to spread disinformation and another narrative about the West “seeking to change the world order.”
The number of victims of the devastating earthquake has already passed the 46,000 mark in Turkey and Syria. The UN said that the final death toll from the earthquake could double.
Geological experts refute speculation that such a catastrophe could have been provoked by any human-made systems. The earthquake in Turkey and Syria was caused by the collision of the Arabian plate, which was moving northward, with the Anatolian plate. Plate friction usually causes very destructive earthquakes. Data from seismometers, which measure the shaking of the earth caused by earthquake waves, showed that this earthquake had a magnitude of 7.8 out of 10 on the moment magnitude scale.
Fact-checkers from USA Today also drew attention to the spread of this conspiracy theory in the English-speaking world, according to which the human factor is allegedly behind the earthquake in Turkey. Rachel Abercrombie, who studies earthquakes at Boston University, told USA Today in a commentary that humans are not capable of causing such strong earthquakes by any of their actions.
“Various human activities – such as building large water reservoirs and fracking and waste-water injection related to hydrocarbon extraction and geothermal energy projects – can induce earthquakes, but never as large as this,” she said.
Unfortunately, Russian propaganda is ruthless with such sensitive and tragic topics. On the contrary, they will use every opportunity to sow discord and undermine European and global unity. They will manipulate public opinion to achieve their own interests, saying that the West is guilty of everything.
Alina Lipp has been exposed repeatedly for spreading outright and blatant lies. Lies on the verge of complete nonsense or insanity.
But the more terrible the lie, the more willingly people believe it. This is what the Nazis used to say.
Photo: Ihlas News Agency (iha) | Via Reuters