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Followers of the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory are divided after Joe Biden's inauguration confounded their predictions that Donald Trump would remain president in order to punish his enemies in the "deep state."
Many reacted with shock & despair as Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th US president.
"I just want to throw up," said one in a popular chat on the Telegram messaging app. "I'm so sick of all the disinformation & false hope."
Others insisted "the plan" had not failed, finding new theories to latch on to.
For weeks, QAnon followers had been promoting 20 January as a day of reckoning, when prominent Democrats & other elite "Satanic pedophiles" would be arrested & executed on the orders of President Trump.
But, as Mr Biden took his oath & no arrests were made, some in the QAnon community had an uncomfortable meeting with reality.
"It's done & we were played," wrote another.
"This is a very difficult day for all of us," said one influencer whose Twitter account with 200,000 followers was recently suspended.
"Today's inauguration makes no sense to the Christian patriots & we thought 'the plan' was the way we would take this country back."
One woman whose husband is a QAnon follower told the BBC that inauguration day had been "the most disappointing" of his life.
She's hopeful Wednesday's events may have shaken his faith in the conspiracy, but fears what comes next.
"I'm not a told-you-so kind of person & never seek to belittle or humiliate," she said, adding that his beliefs had put a strain on their marriage in recent months.
Source: BBC
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