Sebastian Vandermeersch
@sebkilli.bsky.social
Investigative journalist at Bellingcat focused on conflict & human rights. Formerly: BBC Verify and CIR. Views are my own.
As fighting intensifies in Mali, Bellingcat has verified two recent strikes that used Shahed-136 type kamikaze drones. Video footage of the strikes provides the clearest open-source evidence to date of use of these drones in the conflict www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/07...
Shahed-Type Drones Filmed During Mali Village Attacks - bellingcat
Bellingcat has geolocated footage showing Shahed-136 type kamikaze drones in operation in Mali.
bellingcat.com
Our latest Bellingcat investigation reveals that #Shahed type drones, likely of #Russian origin, have now reached #Mali and are being used to strike civilian targets. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/07...
Shahed-Type Drones Filmed During Attack on Mali Villages - bellingcat
Bellingcat has geolocated footage showing Shahed-136 type kamikaze drones in operation in Mali.
bellingcat.com
If you want to hear about recent Bellingcat investigations on Mali and Sudan, I will be speaking at SOAS in London this Saturday. Hosted by Iain Overton, the event brings together colleagues from across the human rights investigations field. Free tickets here: www.eventbrite.com/e/investigat...
Investigating the Military-Technological Complex
A seminar to help understand how to investigate, expose, and hold to account civilian harm from technological advances in warfare.
eventbrite.com
Working with Bellingcat researcher @sebkilli.bsky.social Vandermeersch, @dailymail.co.uk recently covered our analysis of several high-profile drone strikes that the United Arab Emirates government appeared to downplay, mischaracterise or simply did not acknowledge. www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4II...
The Iranian Strikes the UAE Didn’t Want You To See | Photo Evidence
YouTube video by Daily Mail World
youtube.com
Hundreds of people were reportedly detained under the #UAE's cybercrime laws to suppress footage of Iranian strikes. It was a pleasure to join Catherine Barnwell on the latest episode of Photo Evidence for Bellingcat, where we examined the strikes. www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4II...
The Iranian Strikes the UAE Didn’t Want You To See | Photo Evidence
YouTube video by Daily Mail World
youtube.com
Amgad Abdelgadir and myself will be presenting our Bellingcat investigation which revealed a disturbing trend of Sudanese child soldiers going viral on TikTok. The event will be hosted at Kings College London on 16 June. Free tickets available here: www.tickettailor.com/events/kings...
Select tickets – Investigation Walkthrough with Dabanga & Bellingcat: Child Soldiers on TikTok in Sudan's Civil War – King's College London, Macadam Building, room 604
Investigation Walkthrough with Dabanga & Bellingcat: Child Soldiers on TikTok in Sudan's Civil War – King's College London, Macadam Building, room 604, Tue 16 Jun 2026 - In this Investigation Walkthro...
tickettailor.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. www.bellingcat.com/news/africa/...
Banned Russian Submunitions Found After Mali's Military Announces Airstrikes - bellingcat
Unexploded Russian-made cluster munition bomblets have been found in northern Mali – despite the West African country being party to a convention that bans their use.
bellingcat.com
Since the beginning of 2026, at least four landslides have reportedly killed hundreds of people at the Rubaya mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a major global source of coltan. www.bellingcat.com/news/africa/...
DRC’s Coltan Belt: Verifying Deadly Landslides At Mines Under M23 Control - bellingcat
Hundreds reportedly died in landslides at DRC’s Rubaya coltan mines. What can open sources verify?
bellingcat.com
Satellite imagery shows that at least 46 towns and villages in southern Lebanon have been heavily damaged or, in some cases, entirely flattened by the Israeli Defence Forces. Bellingcat’s interactive map reveals the scale of the destruction: www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/05...
Satellite Imagery Shows Ongoing Demolitions Across Southern Lebanon - bellingcat
Dozens of towns and villages within the IDF's “Yellow Line” in southern Lebanon have been heavily damaged or destroyed in recent months.
bellingcat.com
In the wake of the Iranian attacks on the UAE, the country’s attorney general warned that publication of images or videos of strikes was illegal. People were also encouraged to report anyone sharing photos or videos of the strikes to authorities. www.youtube.com/shorts/J04UK...
How the UAE Downplays the Impact of Iran War
YouTube video by Bellingcat
youtube.com
NPR also discussed our work in an All Things Considered episode, referencing our latest tool and our reporting of high-profile incidents in the UAE where authorities had downplayed damage. Read the investigation: www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/04... Listen to the podcast: www.npr.org/2026/04/12/n...
The War You’re Not Allowed to See: How the UAE Rewrites the Story of Iranian Strikes - bellingcat
A review of official statements shows that the public account does not always align with what can be observed through open sources.
bellingcat.com
Our latest!
Bellingcat@bellingcat.com · 4mo agoAs Iranian drones target the UAE, Bellingcat reveals a number of instances where authorities downplayed damage and mischaracterised interceptions. Meanwhile the UAE’s attorney general warned that publication of images or videos of strikes is illegal. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/04...
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. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03...
Evidence Points to US Scattering Mines over Iranian Village - bellingcat
US appears to have deployed the Gator Scatterable Mine system over Kafari, a village near Shiraz, Iran.
bellingcat.com
Bellingcat has now geolocated the photos of munition remnants to the northwest of the Bir Tine neighbourhood in Chad, just 650 metres to the border of the Western Darfur region of Sudan that is largely controlled by the Rapid Support Forces. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03...
Munition Remnants Pictured at Site of Deadly Chad Strike Match Weapon Previously Used by Sudan’s RSF - bellingcat
Munition remnants pictured at the site of a strike in the town of Tiné, Chad, appear to match a weapon previously used by Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
bellingcat.com
Bellingcat@bellingcat.com · 5mo agoMunition remnants from a strike that killed 17 people in Tiné, Chad, on Wednesday, appear to match a model previously used by Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the war with Sudanese government forces – despite RSF denials of involvement in the incident.
Munition remnants from a strike that killed 17 people in Tiné, Chad, on Wednesday, appear to match a model previously used by Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the war with Sudanese government forces – despite RSF denials of involvement in the incident.
A Pakistani airstrike on a drug rehabilitation centre on March 16 in Kabul killed at least 400 people and injured 250 others, according to Afghan officials. But online accounts claim that the strike targeted military infrastructure. Here's what open sources can tell us...
This is a story that sits with you: Child soldiers are taking Sudan’s civil war to TikTok. @bellingcat.com identified 12 accounts linked to child soldiers, some with millions of views. @theworld.org learned more from Bellingcat's @sebkilli.bsky.social. theworld.org/segments/202...
Child soldiers take Sudan's civil war to TikTok - The World from PRX
Videos of children in Sudan are going viral on social media sites, but the TikTok stars appear to be child soldiers caught up in the country’s civil war. The videos show adolescent boys wearing camouf...
theworld.org
The RSF has been able to carry out effective long-range drone strikes on SAF-controlled airbases in late 2025, @planet.com imagery shows. Both Wadi Seidna and Atbara airbase, home to #drones and other aircraft, witnessed direct hits on hangars and runways Below my quick #Sudan analysis
Great video by @merelzoet.bsky.social
Bellingcat@bellingcat.com · 5mo agoThe Sudanese child soldiers going viral on TikTok: Our latest investigation uncovers how children linked to armed groups in Sudan’s civil war have been building large followings on social media platforms. www.youtube.com/shorts/e-CUx...
Huge thanks to Amgad Abdelgadir, Lucy Swinnen, @gycsak.bsky.social, @merelzoet.bsky.social, @beaudonelly.bsky.social, @galen.reich.me.uk and Riccardo Giannardi for all their hard work pulling this together!
Bellingcat@bellingcat.com · 6mo agoA Bellingcat investigation reveals child soldiers in Sudan’s civil war have become viral figures on TikTok. Videos attracting millions of views show the children with senior military officials, celebrating battlefield victories and delivering violent threats. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/02...
Since we reached out to X about Grok attempting to unredact photos of Epstein victims upon X users’ requests, we’ve noticed Grok now refusing to unredact new requests. Bellingcat researcher @koltai.bsky.social reports: www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/02...
Epstein Files: X Users Are Asking Grok to 'Unblur' Photos of Children - bellingcat
Bellingcat reviewed dozens of requests for Grok to generate the faces of children and women that had been redacted from the latest documents.
bellingcat.com
We just published our full analysis of the ICE killing of Alex Pretti on Bellingcat www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/01...
Alex Pretti: Analysing Footage of Minneapolis CBP Shooting - bellingcat
Bellingcat has analysed video of the shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. The footage appears to contradict statements made by the Department of Homeland Security.
bellingcat.com
@sebkilli.bsky.social maps how JNIM’s campaign of attacks on fuel convoys has crippled Mali’s supply routes, destroying 130+ tankers and exposing the junta’s failure to secure Bamako’s economic lifelines.
Mali Under Siege: Tracking the Fuel Blockade Crippling Bamako - bellingcat
Attacks by a jihadist group on fuel convoys bound for Bamako, the capital of Mali, have destroyed more than 130 tankers since September, a Bellingcat investigation has found. The systematic attacks b...
bellingcat.com
NEW: Israel struck Nasser Hospital at least 4 times in its attack which killed journalists, BBC Verify found. We found Israel hit two staircases in the first wave. Minutes later it struck one of the staircases twice more. @benedictgarman.com @sebkilli.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Israel struck Gaza's Nasser Hospital four times, analysis finds
New footage has revealed that two more strikes were carried out on hospital by Israel than initially reported.
bbc.co.uk
