Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, videos showing events unfold have been broadcasted across social media platform TikTok. This has lead to some labelling the conflict the “First TikTok war“.
TikTok has democratised the flow of information, allowing its over one billion global users to see first-hand the brutality of war. But, contrary to popular belief, the Russian invasion of Ukraine is not the first conflict to be broadcasted on the app. TikTok has been revolutionising war reporting since its release in 2018.
The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan
In May 2021, when the Taliban overthrew the government, footage of fighting between the US military and Taliban went viral on TikTok.
There was also harrowing footage of Afghan’s falling from planes as they attempted to escape.
And many young influencers, such as Zahra, formerly known by the TikTok handle @muslimthicc, began using TikTok to draw attention to atrocities, as well as the Afghan refugee crisis.
The 2021 Israel-Palestine crisis
When Israel began its bombardment of Palestine in April 2021, leaving nearly 300 Palestinians killed including 66 children, much of the onslaught was broadcasted all over social media.
This TikTok video showing Israeli airstrikes was viewed over 44 million times.
Meanwhile, Palestinian journalists such as Muna Al Kurd and her brother Mohammed, broadcast live videos of Palestinians being evicted from their homes.
More recently, videos have gone viral of arrests, for example this video of a Palestinian girl being assaulted by Israeli Police.
The Syrian civil war
The Syrian conflict has led to a refugee crisis where millions have been forced to flee across the border into Turkey. Syrian journalist, Qusai Shabib, has broadcasted to his over 350 thousand followers highlighting the hardship in the camps. He has nearly 4 million likes.