THIS is the shocking moment a reckless YouTuber almost got speared after rowing up to an untouched “cannibal tribe” in Indonesia.
In the tense footage, thrill-seeker Dara Tah and a group of tourists nervously edge their wooden boat towards tribesmen standing on the banks of Papua’s dense jungle.
TiktokReckless YouTuber Dara Tah risked being speared by an untouched tribe in Indonesia[/caption]
TiktokHis peace offering of salt was rejected, sparking online fury from viewers[/caption]
Within seconds, one warrior raises a bow and arrow in their direction, forcing the visitors into a panic.
“I think they’re pointing bows and arrows at us, bro,” one of Tah’s crew says anxiously.
“Seriously, this is terrifying,” Tah mutters, his hand raised in a shaky wave.
“Seriously, they are huge bows.”
The daredevil influencer – who boasts more than 827,000 YouTube subscribers and 721,000 TikTok followers – then attempts to win favour by waving packets of salt in the air.
One tribesman tastes it, spits it out, and fixes Tah with a menacing glare.
“Oh God, he doesn’t look like he likes that,” Tah says nervously, before urging: “Alright guys, let’s move back maybe.”
His local guide Demi is heard apologising: “I’m sorry I took you here.”
The bizarre stunt, filmed in August, has sparked fury online after Tah described the group as a “cannibal tribe.”
Furious viewers blasted him for disturbing the community, with one commenting: “Leave them alone and they are not cannibals!”
Another added: “They are not cannibal, they are just people living a peaceful life.”
Papua, on the western half of New Guinea, is home to more than 250 tribes with their own unique languages and cultures – but many remain hostile to outsiders.
Contact is not only dangerous, but also risks exposing tribes to deadly diseases they have no immunity to.
The stunt echoes previous fatal encounters with isolated peoples.
In 2018, American missionary John Allen Chau was shot dead with arrows on North Sentinel Island in India after attempting to convert a protected tribe.
Authorities never recovered his body.
North Sentinel Island is off-bounds to visitors, with tribes people ready to kill on sight
Christian missionary John Allen Chau was killed by Sentinelese tribespeople when he visited the islandsRex
Earlier this year, another American tourist was arrested for trying to leave a can of Diet Coke and a coconut as “gifts” for the same community.
Survival experts warn that such reckless “dark tourism” endangers not only the adventurers but also entire tribes.
Caroline Pearce of Survival International has said of similar stunts: “It beggars belief that someone could be that reckless and idiotic.
“This person’s actions not only endangered his own life but they also put the lives of the entire tribe at risk.”
Tah, however, is no stranger to controversy.
He has previously filmed himself on Scotland’s anthrax-infected Gruinard Island, explored Kent’s forbidden “Deadman’s Island” strewn with human skeletons, and spent 48 hours inside a decommissioned Titan II missile complex in Arkansas.
The Irish national also braved three nights on “Snake Island” in Borneo, notorious for its deadly vipers.
But his latest escapade may be his most dangerous yet.
After the failed offering, Tah admitted to his followers: “I’m not going to lie, that was absolutely terrifying.”
And despite the backlash, he teased a return visit in the video caption: “Will try again tomorrow. Wish us luck.”
AlamyTah’s stunt took place on the banks of Papua’s dense jungle[/caption]