Old Images Shared To Claim ISKCON Temple Feeding People in Ukraine

The images are not related to the Ukraine-Russia conflict. While one image is from 2015, the other is from 2009.

The claim states that the images show ISKCON temples distributing food in Ukraine.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

Several media organisations like Loksatta, DNA, among others, have shared pictures that showed food being served with the claim that International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temples in Ukraine are providing meals to needy people, amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

However, we found that the images are not related to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. While one image could be traced back to 2015, we found the other image existed on the internet since 2009.

Moreover, ISKCON has also refuted the claims around these photos and clarified that it is not able to provide shelter or food distribution at the temples in Ukraine at the moment.

Catch all the live updates on the Russia-Ukraine tensions here.

CLAIM

The images were shared by one 'News Arena' on Twitter with the caption, "54 ISKCON temples in Ukraine are providing meals to needy people".

The pictures posted on 26 February has over 19,000 likes and 4,000 retweets.

An archive of the tweet can be seen here.

(Source: Twitter/Screenshot)

The archived links of news organisations like DNA and Marathi newspaper Loksatta can be seen here and here respectively.

More archived links can be seen here, here, here and here.

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

We found that while one image was uploaded in 2015, the other could be traced back to 2009.

Let's take a look at the images one by one.

IMAGE 1

The claim states, "54 ISKCON temples in Ukraine are providing meals to needy people."

(Photo: News Arena/Twitter)

We conducted a Google reverse image search and found the photo in a blogpost that was published in June 2019.

The blogpost was published on 3 June 2019.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

Further, we found a higher resolution image on the official website of 'Alachua Hare Krishna temple' of ISKCON.

The URL showed the image was uploaded in 2015.

The image was uploaded in 2015.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

Clearly, an image from 2015 is being shared now to claim that the photo shows food distribution efforts in Ukraine.

IMAGE 2

The claim states, "54 ISKCON temples in Ukraine are providing meals to needy people."

(Photo: News Arena/Twitter)

We conducted a Google reverse image search and found the photo in the official website of ISKCON temple in the photo gallery of 'Food for Life'.

The image URL showed that the upload year was 2015.

The image was uploaded in 2015.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

We also found this image on Wikimedia Commons that was uploaded on 21 February 2009 with the caption "Member of Food for Life Russia giving food".

The photo was uploaded in 2009.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

ISKCON has also clarified saying that there is misinformation claiming that 54 temples and centres in Ukraine are providing food relief and shelter programme for the public.

"There is only one prasadam (holy food) distribution program operating at this time. It is located in the eastern part of Ukraine, in Donetsk. Hare Krishna Food Relief programs have begun in Hungary to feed refugees, as reported earlier today by ISKCON News. Leaders of other ISKCON temples in Europe including Poland, are hoping to start similar programs in the near future for refugees," a report by ISKCON News read.

ISKCON has also clarified that the claim is false.

(Source: ISKCON news/Screenshot)

Clearly, old images are been falsely linked to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis.

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