Did German politician Friedrich Merz issue a warning that something would occur on September 24, 2022, which would be remembered into the future and not be forgotten by any person? No, that's not true: On February 27, 2022, just days after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Merz spoke of the first pictures seen, and first thoughts in the minutes after receiving news of the war. He misspoke when he referred to the date, saying "September 24, 2022," when he intended to say "February 24, 2022." The official minutes of the German Bundestag meeting have a corrected transcript that says February 24, 2022, but social media posts in September 2022 wrongly claimed his misstatement was an ominous warning.
The video clip comes from an address by Merz given in the Bundestag on February 27, 2022. The full video is posted on Merz' YouTube account, with the clip in question starting 0:30 seconds in. A short 15-second clip of the address was posted on TikTok by @creazy_pfleger (archived here) with these hashtags:
Ähm 24.09.2022 😳 habe ich was #verpasst gerade gesehen #Live 😂 #friedrichmerz #bundesregierung #deutschland #bundestag #welt #nachrichten
Translated:
Um 09/24/2022 😳 did I miss #something just watched #live 😂 #friedrichmerz #federalgovernment #germany #federalparliament #world #news
This is how the post appeared at the time of writing:
(Image source: TikTok screenshot taken on Thu Sep 15 15:20:18 2022 UTC)
The caption added on the video reads, "Zeitsprung 24.09.2022" which indicates a jump in time. The video captures the moment Merz misspoke and said:
Dieser 24. September 2022 wird uns allen als ein Tag im Gedächtnis bleiben, von dem wir später einmal sagen werden: Ich weiß noch genau, wo ich war...
Translated:
This September 24, 2022 will be a day that remains in our memory, of which we will later say: I remember exactly where I was...
The minutes from the Bundestag meeting of February 27, 2022 have corrected the error in Merz' spoken address (on page 9) to say February rather than September. The context of the address is unquestionably about the invasion of Ukraine. Translated to English it reads:
Friedrich Merz (CDU/CSU):
Madam President! Ladies and gentlemen! Dear Colleagues! This February 24, 2022 will be a day that remains in our memory, of which we will later say: I remember exactly where I was when I first heard the news about the war in Ukraine and saw the first pictures of it. - Our first thoughts in those minutes were and remain unchanged to this day for all of the people of Ukraine.
...
We mourn with the families of the victims who died in such large numbers in those hours and minutes up to this day - including among the civilian population. And we admire the courage and the will of these people to fight for their freedom.
The original German:
Friedrich Merz (CDU/CSU):
Frau Präsidentin! Meine sehr geehrten Damen und Herren! Liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen! Dieser 24. Februar 2022 wird uns allen als ein Tag im Gedächtnis bleiben, von dem wir später einmal sagen werden: Ich weiß noch genau, wo ich war, als ich die erste Nachricht vom Krieg in der Ukraine gehört und die ersten Bilder davon gesehen habe. - Unsere ersten Gedanken in diesen Minuten galten und sie gelten unverändert bis heute dem ganzen Volk der Ukrainer.
...
Wir trauern mit den Familien um die Opfer, die es bis heute und auch in diesen Stunden und Minuten in so großer Zahl - auch unter der Zivilbevölkerung - gibt. Und wir bewundern den Mut und den Willen dieses Volkes, um seine Freiheit zu kämpfen.
