Fact-Check: Does This Video Show a Failed Missile Launch by Pakistan? No!

The video dates back to 2013 and shows Russia's Proton-M rocket failing to launch in Kazakhstan.

An old video from Kazakhstan has gone viral with the false claim that it shows an old, failed missile launch attempt by Pakistan.

(Source: Facebook/Altered by The Quint)

A video showing a missile launching, then burning up and exploding as it lands on the ground, is being shared on Facebook, where users have claimed that it shows an older, failed missile launch attempt by Pakistan.

An archived version of this post can be seen here.

(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)

(Archived versions of more claims can be seen here and here.)

But...?: The claim is false.

• The video dates back to 2013 and shows an unmanned Russian Proton-M rocket which failed to launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

How did we find out the truth?: Conducting a reverse image search on one section of the viral video led us to a website called Universe Magazine which carried a still image from the video.

The report carried a still image from the viral video.

(Source: Facebook/Universe Magazine/Altered by The Quint)

• The page, which discussed how chemical rocket engines worked, had shared this image with the caption, "Rocket accident of Proton-M on July 2, 2013."

It mentioned that it showed a rocket accident in 2013.

(Source: Universe Magazine/Screenshot)

• For more information, we carried out a keyword search using the rocket's name and the date mentioned.

• This took us to a YouTube video shared in 2023, which had shared the same visuals in its video about the tenth anniversary of Russia's Proton-M rocket exploding.

• Visuals from the viral video can be seen between the 10 and 55-seconds marks.

• We also came across nearly identical visuals in a report by Euronews, which it had published on 2 July 2013.

• The video report said that an unmanned Russian rocket blasted after its launch from Kazakhstan's Baikonur launch facility, caused by an "emergency switch off of the rocket's engine" shortly after it launched.

The Telegraph, too, shared these visuals in 2013.

Conclusion: A 12-year-old of a Russian rocket failing to launch has gone viral with the false claim that it shows an old video of a Pakistani missile.

(Not convinced of a post or information you came across online and want it verified? Send us the details on WhatsApp at 9540511818 , or e-mail it to us at [e-mail] and we'll fact-check it for you. You can also read all our fact-checked stories here.)