Hoax Philippine military message resurfaces after South China Sea clash

A fabricated warning supposedly relayed by a Philippine military official to an archbishop claimed the Catholic-majority archipelago was readying for war as tensions escalated in the South China Sea. The same message has been circulating online since at least 2016 and was "fake" according to a military spokesman. The purported archbishop named in the posts did not exist, the assembly of Catholic bishops in the Philippines separately told AFP.

"Let us pray that this does not happen," read a Tagalog-language post shared on Facebook on June 23, 2024.

It included a screenshot appearing to show a conversation on Facebook Messenger that said in part: "The AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) is currently on red alert because of China's anger."

It added war equipment from France, the United States and Japan were arriving at the Clark military base north of Manila to aid the Philippines in case of war.

The message was purportedly sent by "Archbishop Martinez" based on information from "General David".

The post surfaced after a violent clash between Philippine and Chinese sailors in the South China Sea on June 17.

Chinese coast guard personnel wielding knives, sticks and an axe foiled the Filipino navy's attempt to resupply marines stationed on a derelict warship that sits atop Second Thomas Shoal.

It was the latest and most serious incident in a series of escalating confrontations between China and the Philippines in recent months as Beijing stepped up efforts to push its claims to nearly all of the strategically located waterway.

President Ferdinand Marcos said on June 23 the country would not resort to war in resolving the dispute (archived link).

Many social media users appeared to believe the circulating message, which was also shared on TikTok and elsewhere on Facebook here, here, and here.

"Warning of a possible war between China and the Philippines," one commented.

"Red alert / Code Red. Let's be ready for our country's war," another wrote.

'Old and fake'

Keyword searches on Facebook, however, showed the same message has circulated online since at least July 2016 for example here, here and here.

At the time, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled China's sweeping claims over the South China Sea had no legal basis.

China has ignored the ruling, saying the UN-backed tribunal had no jurisdiction over the case.

The message resurfaced in 2021 and was rubbished by the Philippine military at the time, according to a report from the Manila Bulletin newspaper (archived link).

Colonel Xerxes Trinidad, public affairs chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, told AFP on June 25, 2024 the circulating message was "old and fake".

"The military is not on red alert status currently," he said.

A red alert would mean all troops in any given area are ready to be deployed at any time, according to the state-run Philippine News Agency (archived link).

The Philippine armed forces usually raise this level during elections, rebel attacks and natural disasters (archived links here, here, and here).

The Catholic Bishop's Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) separately told AFP on June 26 that no current or retired archbishop in the country was named "Martinez".

The CBCP's roster of current and retired bishops also did not list any archbishop with the name "Martinez" (archived link).

AFP has repeatedly debunked misinformation swirling around the South China Sea tensions.