FLASH
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In the second week of December, a video began circulating on French-speaking social media, claiming that a coup was underway in France and that President Emmanuel Macron might have been ousted from power.
The video, a product of artificial intelligence, garnered millions of views and even caused concern among the leader of an African country.
Initially, even the French president himself failed to convince Mette to withdraw it.
The fake video claimed that a coup had taken place in France and that President Emmanuel Macron might have been ousted from power.
Under the guise of "breaking news," presented in a video clip on Facebook, a supposed "reporter" from the nonexistent French channel "Live 24" announced that Macron and his government had been overthrown.
"At the moment, unofficial information indicates that a coup is underway in France, led by a colonel, whose identity has not been revealed, and that French President Emmanuel Macron may have been ousted from power," he said.
As the supposed journalist broadcast the “report,” the illuminated Eiffel Tower was visible in the background, police lights were flashing, a helicopter was flying overhead, and an armed soldier was guarding the area nearby. Behind her, a crowd of citizens appeared stunned, trying to see what was happening behind the police barriers.
Titled "Coup in France," the video claimed that President Macron and his government had been overthrown.
Emmanuel Macron makes reference to this fake video (IA) spread by Facebook to its users, faisant croire à un coup d'État en France.
— Raphael Grably (@GrablyR) December 16, 2025
Toujours en ligne (13 million views). https://t.co/uj1a2Swy5t pic.twitter.com/U151wrZMuU
Emmanuel Macron was informed of the fake video on December 14. Despite his interventions to remove it, Meta left it online for several days, claiming that it did not violate the platform's rules.
On Sunday, the chaotic scenes, although completely fake and artificially generated, caught the attention of an African head of state, who contacted the French president directly.
"One of my African counterparts sent me a message: 'Dear President, what is happening in your country?'" Macron told regional newspaper La Provence during his visit to Marseille on Tuesday.
By then, the video, allegedly posted by a user with the nickname "Islam", had already garnered 13 million views.
Le Monde has identified the person behind this fake video, which has received millions of views.
"I don't know why I did it, I just created it that way," says the young man, who operates from Burkina Faso and asked to remain anonymous.
He explains that he posted the video in early December on a Facebook page he manages. Saying he was “concerned and impressed,” he says he was inspired by “many videos of fake coups” created in other African countries.
According to him, these types of videos only serve to demonstrate his skills in creating videos with artificial intelligence, a field in which he is trained.
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