Notices by Bellingcat (bellingcat@mstdn.social)

Latest: Two charities associated with the world’s largest far-right Hindu group have raised more than US$24.4 million over a five-year period through US grants that allow the donor to be anonymous, Bellingcat can reveal: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/10/06/dafs-india-rss-donations/?utm_source=mastodon

We are aware of an individual using a UK number on Telegram and WhatsApp under the name “Antony Kevin” to seek assistance recruiting journalists and analysts working on Syria. They claim to work for Bellingcat, but do not. Please disregard requests from them and contact [contact@bellingcat.com].

Viral reports this week suggested new Google satellite imagery showed unseen destruction in Gaza. But the imagery actually depicts the scene in February 2026. Bellingcat has obtained satellite images from September that show how the destruction has continued. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/middle-east/2026/10/01/viral-google-maps-images-shared-widely-this-week-show-gaza-ruins-we-obtained-more-recent-satellite-imagery/?utm_source=mastodon

Today marks three years since the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) was formed in an effort to restore national sovereignty. To push that message Mali’s military government now broadcast drone strikes on national television, describing them as "precise" attacks on terrorists. A joint investigation by Bellingcat and Jeune Afrique has found Mali’s military drone strikes are repeatedly hitting civilian areas raising questions about the nature of their precision strikes. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/09/16/drone-strike-civilians-killed-aes-sahel-mali-russia-africa-corps-guilt-by-location-jeune-afrique/?utm_source=mastodon

Open source research methods are often seen associated with conflict reporting, but these methods can also be applied to environmental journalism. Find out how we uncovered the identify of a wildlife trafficker that was selling protected species on Facebook: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/06/24/rhino-horn-leopard-skin-and-tiger-claws-sold-openly-on-facebook/

Our Colombian partner, Cerosetenta, was ordered by a judge to remove a joint investigation we published with them about a political candidate and his alleged links to members of an international neo-Nazi group in Bogota. Cerosetenta will now challenge that decision. https://cerosetenta.uniandes.edu.co/cerosetenta-acudira-a-la-corte-constitucional-tras-fallo-de-juez-que-le-ordena-eliminar-investigacion-sobre-presuntos-vinculos-de-candidato-con-una-red-neonazi

The investigation was published on May 11 and used open sources and material from the former candidate himself to – among other things – demonstrate apparent interactions with a Bogota-based neo-Nazi group, the local branch of the international Active Club movement.

Initially, a court ruled in favor of Cerosetenta and freedom of expression, finding the publication did not violate the fundamental rights of the former candidate, as he had argued. But that decision was overturned on appeal.

Today, Bellingcat launches its formal membership program. For over a decade, our investigations have contributed to international court rulings, identified state actors behind war crimes, and documented accountability failures on American streets. This work has always been free to access. That independence depends on individual supporters. If evidence-based accountability journalism matters to you, we'd be grateful for your support.
https://www.bellingcat.com/donate/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=donation_drive_2026

Researcher Chu Yang joined us on this week's Stage Talk to examine China’s leading social media platforms, outlining how they operate and why they matter.

She also shared practical guidance on accessing these platforms from abroad, along with key resources for tracking trends across China and its global diaspora. Listen back by searching 'Stage Talks with Bellingcat' on podcast platforms: https://rss.com/podcasts/bellingcatstagetalk/2785287/

What can munition remnants, damage patterns, or craters at the site of a strike reveal? Bellingcat researcher Trevor Ball created five challenges to introduce you to techniques that open source researchers use to analyse the aftermath of a strike. Challenge.bellingcat.com

Footage analysed by Bellingcat and Jeune Afrique shows unexploded Russian-made cluster munition bomblets found in northern Mali - Despite Mali being a state party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) which prohibits their use. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/africa/2026/05/26/banned-russian-submunitions-found-after-malis-military-announces-airstrikes/?utm_source=mastodon

India has exported more than 320 million unapproved synthetic opioid pills to West Africa in just three years. Trade data shows over 1,400 shipments of tapentadol — a potent painkiller — were sent to a region already facing an opioid crisis. Our investigation, with Indian publishing partner Newslaundry, found that more than 50% of the painkillers were high-strength (200mg+), doses not even approved for use in India.
Katherine de Tolly reports: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/04/17/painkiller-pipeline-300-million-tapentadol-pills-sent-from-india-to-west-africa/?utm_source=mastodon

Looking to develop your investigative skills?
Our latest challenges focus exclusively on audio analysis, without visual cues—an increasingly relevant skill in the context of AI-generated audio.
Explore the exercises here:
https://challenge.bellingcat.com/

With widespread internet blackouts in Iran and new restrictions on some satellite imagery in the region, Bellingcat is launching a tool to help estimate the level of destruction in Iran and the wider Gulf region. https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2026/04/07/tool-damage-assessment-destruction-sentinel-satellite-imagery-iran-us-gulf/?utm_source=mastodon

Videos of explosions have fueled misunderstanding and misinformation in the conflict between US, Israel and Iran, with munition types incorrectly identified amongst claims of “mystery” weapons. But what is an explosion and what can types of explosions really tell us? Bellingcat researcher Trevor Ball’s written a guide that explains explosives, their characteristics and the impact they have on people and infrastructure. https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2026/03/30/explosive-misinformation-a-guide-to-mushroom-clouds-sonic-weapons-and-disintegration/?utm_source=mastodon

Two new videos have emerged showing the deadly strikes that hit an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) compound, as well as an adjacent girls’ school, in Minab, Iran. By geolocating and verifying the footage, Bellingcat found two waves of attacks, occurring hours apart. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/27/new-videos-reveal-more-details-about-iran-girls-school-strike/?utm_source=mastodon

The US appears to have deployed the Gator Scatterable Mine system over Kafari, a village near Shiraz, in southern Iran overnight. At least two people were killed according to local reports. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/26/us-iran-mines-israel-village-missile-munitions-weapons-war-conflict/?utm_source=mastodon

De Telegraaf, the Netherlands’ largest newspaper published an interview with a woman claiming to organise her own evacuation flights from Dubai, promoting seats at €1,600. Bellingcat found that the image in the interview was likely AI-generated, and flight-tracking data suggests no such plane took off.
https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/12/ai-used-to-promote-non-existent-evacuation-flights-from-the-middle-east/?utm_source=mastodon

Bellingcat has geolocated eight videos showing US Tomahawks cruise missiles in Iraq heading towards Iran. The missiles appear to be flying low across valleys near Kirkuk and were likely fired from the Mediterranean sea. We also geolocated imagery of Tomahawk fragments to outside Kafr Zita in Syria. Experts told us that the presence of these missiles in Iraqi and Syrian airspace without an agreement with the countries they pass over might violate international law. https://www.bellingcat.com/news/middle-east/2026/03/11/iran-war-iraq-tomahawks-munitions-syria-located-kurdistan-missiles-fired/?utm_source=mstdn