A TikTok hoax alleging that ambulance crews kidnap children led villagers in Recea-Cristur, Transylvania, to block and attack an ambulance en route to Cluj‑Napoca. The ambulance driver sustained an eye injury but completed the 30-kilometre trip to hospital; doctors expect about three months for recovery. Six people were detained and remanded for 30 days. Officials and the Deputy Prime Minister have condemned the misinformation and called for legislative action.
TikTok Hoax Prompts Transylvanian Villagers to Attack Ambulance, Driver Injured
FILE PHOTO - The logo of Tik Tok is seen at Gamescom. (is associated with: «Fake news on TikTok leads Transylvanian villagers to attack ambulance») Rolf Vennenbernd/dpa
A viral hoax on TikTok claiming ambulance crews abduct children sparked a violent attack on emergency responders in Recea-Cristur, a village in Transylvania, Romanian media reported.
Paramedics were transporting a patient to a hospital in Cluj‑Napoca when another vehicle blocked their route on a rural road. Attackers struck the ambulance with axes, clubs and stones. Despite suffering an eye injury, the ambulance driver managed to continue the roughly 30-kilometre journey to the hospital; doctors said the eye injury will take about three months to heal.
The patient being transported arrived safely at the clinic. Police detained six men and one woman in connection with the assault; a court in Dej remanded them in custody for 30 days.
Context
Officials say misinformation and longstanding distrust of state institutions in poorer Romanian communities helped fuel the attack. Online hoaxes alleging that ambulances are used to kidnap children have circulated in Romania for years, occasionally provoking violence.
In a similar case in 2018, a woman was beaten after delivering books to villages in a decommissioned ambulance as part of a cultural project.
Deputy Prime Minister Oana Gheorghiu wrote on Facebook: "Ambulances do not steal children, but TikTok steals brains," and called on lawmakers to consider new legislation to curb dangerous misinformation.
Authorities continue to investigate the incident as part of broader efforts to combat the spread of harmful hoaxes on social media.
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