This is the moment an Irish TikToker approached a spear-wielding ‘cannibal tribe’ in Papua, attempting to offer them salt, before hurriedly leaving when his gesture was met with hostility.
In footage captured by self-proclaimed adventurer Dara Tah, the tribesmen are seen eyeing their visitors warily, with one member aiming a massive bow and arrow at the approaching boat.
The men in the jungle are scantily head, wearing elaborate feathered headpieces, skirts made out of leaves, and carrying tree branches as staffs.
Tah, who referred to the Indonesian group as a ‘cannibal tribe’, is a recognized internet figure on a mission to become ‘Ireland’s biggest YouTuber ever’.
But this video has already generated some backlash, with some people telling him to leave the tribe alone
He engages in risky stunts to entertain his audience, including working with sulfur miners at Indonesia’s Kawah Ijen volcano and spending 50 hours inside an underground nuclear missile complex.
He has generated over 827,000 subscribers on YouTube and 721,000 followers on TikTok.
In the astonishing video from August, Tah and a team of tourists anxiously arrive at the jungle in the western half of the Island of New Guinea.
The footage shows tribesmen looking suspiciously at their visitors – with one even aiming an enormous bow and arrow towards their boat
In an attempt to ‘make an offering’ so that their group is welcomed, Tah took out packets of salt to give to the tribesmen
He is accompanied by fellow explorers on the small wooden boat as well as a local guide, Demi, who apparently had knowledge of the tribe.
As the vessel edged closer to the bank, a tribesman points a threatening bow and arrow at the visitors, causing them to immediately panic.
‘I think they’re pointing bows and arrows at us, bro,’ one tourist said nervously.
‘This is honestly terrifying,’ Tah remarked, raising his arm in an attempt to wave ‘hello’ and convey peace. ‘Those bows are seriously huge,’ he commented, clearly unnerved.
In an attempt to ‘make an offering’ so that their group was welcomed, Tah took out packets of salt to gift to the tribesmen.
He waved the packets into the air before pouring some salt into his hand.
But when one of the tribe’s leaders – accompanied by a dog – tried some of the salt, he spat it out in dissatisfaction.
‘Oh God, he doesn’t look like he likes that,’ Tah said. ‘Alright guys, let’s move back maybe.’
The leader, panic-stricken, said: ‘We have to move. We’re not welcome. It’s really dangerous.’
As their boat finally edged away from the bank, the TikToker said: ‘I’m not going to lie, that was absolutely terrifying.’
‘I’m sorry I took you here,’ Demi said.
‘Will try again tomorrow. Wish us luck,’ Tah wrote in the caption to the post that has been liked over half a million times.
In the comments to the TikTok, many people have expressed anger towards the influencer for approaching and filming the tribe.
‘Leave them alone and they are not cannibals!’ one person wrote.
‘They are not cannibal, they are just people living a peaceful life,’ another added.
‘But why are you there in the first place?’ a third comment said.
Papua is a province of eastern Indonesia and comprises the western half of the island of New Guinea. Its capital city is Jayapura.
It is not known what exact tribe the group was visiting.
Over the years, Tah has made a name for himself as YouTube’s resident daredevil, filming himself take part in a series of controversial stunts.
In 2023, he ventured to Scotland’s infamous ‘Anthrax Island’, a site contaminated with deadly bacteria during World War Two, where scientists conducted biological warfare experiments.
He made another video about his trip to ‘Deadman’s Island’ – the mysterious site off the north Kent coast that is banned to the public.
There, the remains of dozens of boys and men who died from contagious diseases upon ‘floating prisons’ 200 years ago can be found – meaning the desolate island is strewn with human skeletons.
A year before that, he spent over 48 hours underground in a decommissioned Titan II nuclear missile complex in Arkansas.
And in April earlier this year, he spent three days on ‘Snake Island’, or Kalampunian Damit Island in Borneo – known for its population of venomous snakes.
He also recently represented Ireland alongside his girlfriend in Redbull’s ‘Ibiza Royale’, the world’s ‘wildest obstacle race’ involving almost 200 international teams.
