Sebastian Vandermeersch

Bellingcat researcher @sebkilli.bsky.social spoke to @theworld.org about our recent investigation into government drone strikes frequently hitting populated areas in Mali. theworld.org/segments/202...

A joint Bellingcat and @jeuneafrique.com investigation has uncovered new details about drone strikes carried out by the Malian military that have hit civilian areas and reportedly resulted in the deaths of non-combatants. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/09...

BREAKING: An Irish government jet has been sent to Dubai to extradite Daniel Kinahan, one of the leaders of the Kinahan cartel. The aircraft took off from a military airbase near Dublin this morning. You can track the flight back to Ireland here: globe.adsbexchange.com?icao=4ca448&...

Bellingcat researcher @sebkilli.bsky.social spoke to @dailymail.co.uk 's Photo Evidence about our investigation locating a series of killings caught on camera in Al Fashir (El Fasher), Sudan last year. www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaFu...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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/...

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/...

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...

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...

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...

Our latest!

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...

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 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...

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

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...

Great geolocation by @godin.bsky.social

We just published our full analysis of the ICE killing of Alex Pretti on Bellingcat www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/01...

@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.

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...