A video of an Easter church service in Russia on Sunday has sparked questions on whether or not Russian chief Vladimir Putin was really in attendance.

The footage from the church service, which has been considered over 530,000 thus far, cuts to Putin a number of occasions. At one level, it cuts to Putin doing the signal of the cross gesture whereas holding a candle.

Ukrainian race automotive driver Igor Sushko posted the clip on his Twitter web page and accused Russia of spreading "propaganda" because the nation enters the ninth week of its invasion of Ukraine.

"Russian propaganda faux: Easter on Russian state TV. Putin was an excessive amount of of a coward to be current within the church in the course of the precise occasion," he tweeted. "Pre-recorded footage of him added in, and fairly poorly. He's lacking subsequent to the portray of a crown on a pink desk on the wall."

Different footage has emerged on Twitter that seems to indicate Putin doing this gesture in an empty church. The managing director of the TLFRD Baltics consultancy agency, Mykhailo Golub, alleged on Twitter that Putin's footage was shot individually. "Somebody within the Kremlin leaked how the Easter church service was filmed. The footage of Putin was filmed individually," he tweeted.

Sushko additionally tweeted the video and claimed Putin's look was prerecorded.

"Somebody captured Putin on video in the course of the pre-recording of him in an emptied church protected by his physique guards. This footage was then broadcast as 'dwell' on Russian state propaganda TV, sprinkled into the precise footage of Easter companies."

Nonetheless, BBC journalist Shayan Sardarizadeh dismissed these theories and mentioned the Twitter thread was spreading false claims. He additionally shared photographs from the church occasion which might be on the media firm Getty's web site as an example the truth that Putin was on the occasion in particular person in the course of the service.

Putin
Video footage from an Orthodox Easter mass in Russia has sparked considerations that President Vladimir Putin's look was staged. Above, Putin attends the mass led by Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill on the Christ The Saviour Cathedral on April 24, 2022, in Moscow, Russia. Getty Photographs

"It is day 60 of struggle in Ukraine. A Viral Twitter thread falsely claims footage of President Putin on the orthodox Easter mass was pre-recorded and edited in, incidating he wasn't there, " Sardarizadeh tweeted. "Company photographs from the mass clearly present him on the occasion carrying the very same go well with and tie."

The Related Press Truth Examine Twitter web page additionally tweeted that Putin was on the occasion.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin did attend an Orthodox Easter service in Moscow on Sunday, opposite to false on-line claims. The Related Press photographed him on the service."

The report that the AP shared alongside its tweet mentioned that each Reuters and Agence France-Press additionally printed their very own images of Putin from the service.

Newsweek has contacted the Russian Overseas Workplace for remark.