Footage of Russian intelligence agents detaining a man has been viewed thousands of times in Facebook posts that claim it shows a top US general being arrested in Ukraine. But the claim is false. AFP traced the video to Russian news reports of an unidentified man being detained in March on suspicion of aiding an "illegal armed group" in Crimea. NATO has repeatedly debunked rumours that Roger Cloutier was arrested in Ukraine, and he has been seen publicly since the posts were shared.

"Confirmed: US general arrested by Russia while trying to flee Mariupol," reads a Burmese-language Facebook post shared on April 14.

"Russian forces arrested US General Roger L. Cloutier while he was trying to flee #Mariupol after providing military guidance to Ukrainian forces and mercenaries."

The blurry video, viewed more than 3,300 times, shows a man wearing a baseball cap led away by armed men in military uniforms. A photo of Cloutier is superimposed on the video in the top, left-hand corner.

The footage was shared on Facebook and Twitter in various languages, including English, Burmese, French and Romanian.

The city of Mariupol, located in southeast Ukraine between Russia-occupied Crimea and pro-Russian separatist regions in the east, has seen some of the fiercest fighting in the conflict.

On May 20, Russia said that a total of 1,730 Ukrainian soldiers had surrendered at the besieged Azovstal steel plant in the port city.

NATO denial

AFP previously debunked false claims shared online in...

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