No, video doesn't show tunnel under ex-Bangladesh Prime Minister Hasina's residence

What is the claim?

A video circulating on social media depicts a dark tunnel filled with what appears to be human skeletal remains. Accompanying the video is a claim that it shows the residence of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Some videos include prominent Bangla text asserting that it is the 'Ayna Ghar'—House of Mirrors—a purported secret prison in Bangladesh under the Sheikh Hasina government.

On Facebook and YouTube, the video has been widely shared. One YouTube user captioned it in Bangla, translating to “Ayna Ghar, the den of Sheikh Hasina's heinous misdeeds (archived here)."

Another version of the video on YouTube, with over 570,229 views and more than 19,000 likes, includes the text, “What a terrifying scene in Hasina’s mirror room, and after this, some people are missing her.” While on Facebook, a viral version with over 76,000 reactions displays text in Bangla reading, when translated, “View from inside Ganabhaban,” referring to the Prime Minister's official residence. Archived versions of these posts are available here and here.

 Screenshots of the viral video on social media. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, we found that the viral claim is false; the video actually shows the Catacombs of Paris and originates from a travel-related social media account.

What are the facts?

The video in question bears a watermark reading ‘Samara Adventures.’

 Screenshot from the viral video indicating the source of the video. (Source: Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts)

Following up on this, we found an identical 13-second video (archived here) posted on April 20, 2024, on Instagram by the user Samara Adventures (archived here). The account’s bio indicates a focus on travel, with a description that reads, “🌍 Secret places around the world 🌏Urbex • Catacombs • Underground • Rooftops • Ruins • Outdoors • Travel."

The video’s description and hashtags suggest it was filmed in the Catacombs of Paris, an underground ossuary beneath Paris in France. The user claims the content is their original property.

Screenshot from the original video posted on April 20, 2024 (Source: Instagram: Samara Adventures/Modified by Logically Facts)

The same video appeared on Samara Adventures’ YouTube account on April 26 (archived here), described as “Catacombes de Paris | Forbidden catacombs of Paris.” Both videos feature similar camera angles and settings, confirming their authenticity.

Comparison between the original video from Catacombs of Paris and the viral video claiming to be from Bangladesh (Source: Instagram: Samara Adventures/YouTube/Modified by Logically Facts)

Logically Facts has contacted the user for comment on the video; this story will be updated if and when we receive a response.

Additional verification includes a TikTok post (archived here) from June 17, 2024, with a caption indicating the Paris Catacombs, and a longer YouTube video titled “Catacombs of Paris: Hidden Realms Explored,” uploaded in September 2013. This video shows the same Paris Catacombs scenes as the viral video.

Around the 6:30 timestamp, we identified the same number printed on the left wall—36.B.1957—and a dent on the right wall, which match those seen in the viral video. Additionally, a passage leading to the left is visible, consistent with the viral footage.

Comparison between a YouTube vlog and the original video (Source: YouTube: Al3xtrm/Samara Adventures/Modified by Logically Facts)

We also found other similar vlogs uploaded by YouTubers (archived here and here) from the Catacombs of Paris that depict similar surroundings. These videos show the same tunnels and scattered bones, confirming that the viral video is from Paris, not Bangladesh.

The Catacombs of Paris

The Paris Catacombs are an extensive network of tunnels and caves beneath the city, filled with human bones. In the late 18th century, Paris faced severe overcrowding in its cemeteries, prompting the use of former quarries beneath the Montrouge plain for reburial.

The site, consecrated as the “Paris Municipal Ossuary” on April 7, 1786, draws inspiration from Roman catacombs. The remains, exhumed from cemeteries, were organized symmetrically in the catacombs. The last transfer occurred in 1859, during Georges-Eugène Haussmann's renovations of Paris. The Catacombs stretch over approximately 280 kilometers, with only a small section open to the public, and house the remains of about six million people.

Bangladesh unrest

• Following Sheikh Hasina's resignation as Bangladesh's prime minister, Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus took oath as head of Bangladesh’s interim government on August 8, 2024, at the presidential palace in Dhaka. 

• Since June, students in Bangladesh have been protesting a policy that reserved 30 percent of government jobs for the descendants of the freedom fighters from the 1971 War of Independence.

• Despite the Supreme Court of the country partially rolling back the policy, the protests continued, fuelled by anger against the Hasina-led government, escalating into violence that left over 440 people dead.

The verdict

The viral video, falsely claiming to show human skeletal remains inside a tunnel at Sheikh Hasina's residence, is unrelated to the recent unrest in Bangladesh. It is an April 2024 video from the Catacombs of Paris, France.