Gotcha! Russia MH17 lies caught out by Bellingcat forensics

Using satellite imagery the Russian government wanted to prove that Ukraine was responsible for shooting down Maylasia Airlines MH-17 on 17 July 2014. The British forensic research group Bellingcat demonstrates that the photos are manipulated.

BY NATALIA FRUMKINA and MICHAEL STÜRZENHOFECKER

Four days after the crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in Ukraine on 21 July 2014, the Russian Defense Ministry provided what it said was evidence of the guilt of the Ukraine in causing the disaster.

Deputy Chief of Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Andrej Kartapolov, presented at a press conference satellite photos to prove that Ukrainian air defense missile of the type “Buk M1” shot down the plane.

The pictures show positions and movements of Ukrainian Buk-vehicles, allegedly taken on 17 July 2014 the day of the crash. So it is also in the photos. They should prove that the vehicles were moved on this day in the vicinity of the controlled area of separatists.

A Russian satellite image shows Ukrainian Buk-positions (Source: Bellingcat.com)

These satellite images are no longeron the Russian Defense Ministry web site, which the research group Bellingcat of blogger Eliot Higgins studied at several levels. The allegation is: The photos were digitally processed and dated incorrectly.

Vegetation images mismatch date

The accusation of incorrect dating of some satellite imagery is plausible and reconstructed. This is done by a comparison of the nature of soil structures, buildings and vehicles in the Russian images with the same elements on other satellite photographs.

They suggest that images provided by the Russian Ministry may not be correct.

Who is Bellingcat?

Bellingcat is an investigative group led by the former finance and administration expert Eliot Higgins. The group operates internet website on which publishes the results of its analysis.

Bellingcat’s founder Eliot Higgins is neither a trained journalist nor a weapons expert. He began his projects with videos from the Syrian civil war. He looked up, it located and examined details of the weapons employed by the hundreds.

Higgins was able to prove that the Syrian regime used cluster bombs and chemical weapons. Last year, the blogger launched the website Bellingcat using private donations.

The team evaluates daily hundreds of photos and videos that are publicly available on the Internet.

Their analyzes is considered by experts to be reliable and accurate. This year Higgins and Bellingcat received the special prize of the Hanns-Joachim Friedrichs Prize, one of Germany’s Awards for journalists.

So the Russian Defense Ministry presented about a dated on July 14, 2014 recording a Ukrainian military base north of Donetsk with allegedly clearly recognizable parked Buk-vehicles.

A comparison of the vegetation – as the upper left corner of the recording – with others, ready provided by the satellite service Google Earth pictures, shows that this must be some weeks older than specified by the Russian side.

Photographs show different vegetation at the same location (Source: Bellingcat.com)

In early July, there were no trees or shrubs more in this area. The state of the area, but corresponds to the satellite photographs that were made around the beginning or middle of June. In this way, can the argument of Bellingcat reconstruct with other recordings.

Photoshop manipulation

It becomes more difficult when accusations of manipulation of the image content. While showing a metadata analysis that the photos were edited with Photoshop. With freely available online tools can be traced that the imaging software was used in the satellite photos.

But that alone is not surprising – because the shots coordinates, data and arrows have been inserted which indicate the position of the vehicles. In addition, the images have been reduced.Even for Photoshop may have been used.

From position and nature of the cloud conduct searchers from tampering. (Source: Bellingcat.com)

Further changes should therefore show a forensic analysis, which is however no longer so easy for lay people to understand, according Bellingcat. The so-called error-level analysis here compares the compression caused by variations in a digital image.

To divert the researchers from out of position and nature of the clouds that the satellite images were changed in content. What has been modified exactly mind can not clearly clarified.

Bellingcat is funded by crowdfunding Investigativplattform which has already caused several times with research into the crash of MH17 stir. Thus the group was able to demonstrate that a Buk missile system drove the day before the crash by Russia and rebel-controlled areas.

The day after, the same vehicle with a missing missile was again on the way back. In all probability, the aircraft was hit by a rocket-Buk, 298 people lost their lives.

A final report from the Nederlands to is still pending. Russia and Ukraine give each other the blame for the crash of the machine.

June 1, 2015

Bericht über MH17-AbsturzRussland soll Fotos gefälscht haben

Vegetation images mismatch date

Who is Bellingcat?

Photoshop manipulation

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