AI-generated videos mistakenly share the consequences of Iran's attack on Israel
After Iran launched hundreds of ballistic missiles into Israeli cities with Israel's military campaign, social media users shared an AI-generated video claiming it showed the destruction of Tel Aviv. The clip was made using Google AI and traced it back to an Instagram account that posted the AI content.
Indonesia's video titled on June 15, 2025 on X said: “The Gaza Strip, Lebanon or Syria's Gaza Strip is not recorded, but rather in Tel Aviv, Israel's Tel Aviv, showing the destruction of certain buildings in the city after the Iranian treble missile attack.”
The Arabic text in the top corner of the video reads “Tel Aviv”.
The 16-second video shows the push-ups and the damaged structure.
Screenshots of the screenshot were captured on June 19, 2025 and added a red X to AFP
Iran attacked Israel's drone and missile attack overnight, killing three and dozens of people injured (reserved link).
The attack came after a massive Israeli strike on nuclear and military facilities on June 13, killing high-level commanders, nuclear scientists and dozens of civilians.
The long-term enemy continued to shoot deadly during the most intense confrontation in history, which heightened concerns about the potential conflict that could sweep the Middle East (archived link).
The Iranian Ministry of Health said at least 224 people were killed and more than 1,200 were injured, while the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said at least 24 people were killed and 592 were injured.
The same video and claims are also distributed on Tiktok, Facebook and Instagram. It is also shared in other languages including Thai, English, Bengali, Arabic and Spanish.
However, a reverse image search for the key frame shows that the video was done using Google's AI tool.
Screenshot of Google Images, AI tag highlighted by AFP
Another search found the clip was posted in an Instagram post on May 28, days before Iran’s attack on Israeli attacks, as well as hashtags like #SouthleBanon (such as archived links).
The account shares other AI-generated videos, with its profile rendering “AI resistance”.
AFP has debunked other misinformation related to the Israel-Iran conflict.
