Section: bellingcat (UK)
Russian Colonel General Identified as Key MH17 Figure
Русская версия этого расследования опубликована изданием The Insider. A joint investigation between The Insider and Bellingcat used open source research, investigative journalism, and forensic voice analysis to determine the identity of “Delfin,” a key figure sought by the Joint Investigation Team (JIT), the Dutch-led criminal investigation into...
How the British Government’s Attempts to Fight Corruption and Money Laundering are Already Failing
On 19 August 2017, Bellingcat published an article regarding the new Persons of Significant Control (“PSC”) requirements introduced by the government, intended to deter the owners of Scottish Limited Partnerships (“SLPs”) from using the vehicle’s unique opaque structure as a means to conduct criminal activity. Subsequently, as reported by...
New MH17 Photograph Geolocated to Donetsk
On October 19, 2017, the Joint Investigation Team (JIT), the Dutch-led criminal investigation into the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 (MH17) over Ukraine, published a new photograph Buk 332, the Russian Buk missile launcher that downed MH17 on July 17, 2014. Buk 332, previously identified by Bellingcat as ‘Buk 3×2,’ is an...
JIT Publishes New Photograph of Buk 332 from Day of MH17 Downing
Do you have more information about this photograph or the location it was taken? If so, please send information in English, Russian, or Ukrainian to the JIT via their email ([email protected]), VK page, or WhatsApp (+31683559290). You can also comment on this article or tweet to us (@bellingcat) to discuss the geolocation of the photograph....
Hazardous Legacies: An Open-Source Overview of the Destruction of Deir ez-Zor’s Oil Industry
Now that the so-called Islamic State (IS) is rapidly losing terrain in eastern Syria, a race is underway to capture the oil-rich Deir ez-Zor governorate. The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and militias loyal to the Syrian government, under cover of the Russian airstrikes, rush towards the fields east of the Euphrates River; but so does a contingent of...
The Baltic Way: Sedition, Propaganda and Discontent in Latvia
Stradling itself between Europe’s north and its east, Latvia occupies a unique cultural and geographic space in Europe, finding itself part of German, Swedish, Polish, and Russian empires at different times. This history colors contemporary understanding of the country and its identity, especially in regard to its eastern neighbor – Russia....
How to Conduct Comprehensive Video Collection
Much of Bellingcat’s work requires intense research into particular events, which includes finding every possible photograph, video, and witness account that will help inform our analysis. Perhaps most notably, we exhaustively researched the events surrounding the shoot down of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 (MH17) over eastern Ukraine. The...
Geolocating Libya’s Social Media Executioner
Warning: this article contains graphic material. Update: Incident One, Four and Five have been geolocated. In Short: The International Criminal Court issued its first ever arrest warrant solely based on social media evidence; This warrant is a significant development and aligns the Court with the realities of today’s conflict zones; All...
A Spark in the Dark – Scottish Limited Partnerships and the UK Government’s Faltering Transparency Initiative
The government recently announced new legislation to reveal the beneficial owners of Scottish Limited eartnerships. But this has done little to shed light on the people controlling them. In June 2017, Bellingcat and Transparency International published a joint-report into Scottish Limited Partnerships (“SLPs”) and their increasing rise in...
How Google Analytics Codes Unearthed a Network of South African Fake News Sites
In July 2015, Lawrence Alexander published a report uncovering a number of ostensibly local, Ukrainian news sites that were actually operated out of the so-called “Troll Factory” of St. Petersburg, at 55 Savushkina Street. Lawrence found the connection between these sites by locating a shared Google Analytics ID, which showed that the sites were...
