A viral video shared on Facebook purports to show the Israeli Air Force striking targets in Gaza amid the current Israel-Hamas conflict.
Screenshot captured via Facebook
Verdict: False
The video was originally published on X, the social media platform previously known as Twitter, in May 2023. Thus, the video predates the current Israel-Hamas conflict.
Fact Check:
The U.S. intercepted weapons launched by Yemen Thursday amid the current Israel-Hamas conflict, the Pentagon said, according to The Washington Post. The revelation has stoked fears that the conflict could spread to other Middle Eastern nations, the outlet reported.
“Israeli Air Force is striking targets in Gaza,” the Facebook video, which has received over 1,000 comments, purports. In the video, debris can be seen flying after a nearby building is struck.
The video is not linked to the current Israel-Hamas conflict, however. The video was originally published on X in May 2023. According to its caption, the video shows an Israeli raid on citizen Khader Al-Zaanin’s home.
“Scenes of an Israeli raid targeting the home of citizen Khader Al-Zaanin in Beit Hanoun, north of the [Gaza] Strip,” the video’s caption reads.
Likewise, the same video was published on Facebook in May 2023 by the social media agency Palestinian Eve. This video also indicates that Israeli Forces bombed the home of the Al-Zaanin family. In addition, the video shows the strike from a slightly different angle.
According to Days of Palestine, Israeli warplanes bombed several Palestinian homes in the Gaza Strip on May 13. The home belonging to the Al-Zaanin family, located north of the Gaza Strip, was just one of the many residences that were destroyed, the outlet reported.
Tensions between Israeli security forces and Palestinian armed groups ignited back in May after Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Khader Anan died in an Israeli jail following an 86-day hunger strike, a press release from the United Nations indicated. Anan’s death prompted Palestinian armed groups to fire over 100 rockets toward Israel and for Israel to respond with airstrikes, according to the same release.
Likewise, Check Your Fact did not find the viral Facebook video referenced in any credible news reports about the current Israel-Hamas conflict. The claim is neither repeated on the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) website nor on its verified social media accounts. (RELATED: No, Turkish President Did Not Threaten To Intervene In Israel-Hamas Conflict)
Check Your Fact has contacted the IDF for comment and will update this piece accordingly if one is received.