As news of the plague spreads, some old videos are being repurposed, adding to the disinformation. In one such video posted on X, a user claimed that the plague has also spread to other parts of Russia. The caption in Russian reads, "The plague marches across Russia. God has heard our prayers!"

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DW Fact check: Misleading The video is old and unrelated to the current developments in Irkutsk. A reverse image search reveals that the video was initially posted on August 31 this year, claiming that it showed the Russian republic of Kabardino-Balkaria, a tourist destination around 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miiles)from Irkutsk.

Reviewed by Deutsche Welle ↗ · October 6, 2026