Video of 'German strike on Israel' is AI-generated
- Published on July 19, 2025 at 03:52
- 3 min read
- By AFP Indonesia
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"Germany attacks Israel. What's going on?" reads the Indonesian-language text on a Facebook video shared on June 30, 2025.
The clip appears to show an explosion in a built-up area, along with a caption that largely repeats the false claim.
Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign against Iran on June 13, killing top military commanders and nuclear scientists.
Iranian authorities said more than 1,000 people were killed in Iran (archived link).
Iran responded to the Israeli attacks with drone and missile fire, killing 28 people in Israel, according to Israeli authorities.
US President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Iran had agreed to a truce that came into effect on June 24, which remains in place (archived link).
Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz has urged the foes to respect the truce (archived link).
The country's interior minister, Alexander Dobrindt, expressed support for Israel during a visit to the site of an Iranian missile strike near Tel Aviv in June.
The clip also spread on YouTube, Threads, and SnackVideo, along with the false claim.
Some users appear to believe the footage is genuine, linking it to the recent rise in anti-semitism in Germany (archived link).
"The Jews were Germany's enemies during Adolf Hitler's time," said one user.
Another wrote, "Impressive".
But the video is AI-generated.
A reverse image search on Google led to a YouTube video uploaded on June 23, 2025, titled "Shocking giant blas (sic) in Middle East, still confirming" (archived link).
The clip is labelled "Altered or synthetic content", and that its "sound or visuals were significantly edited or digitally generated".
There is also a watermark that reads "Kling AI" in the bottom right corner of the clip -- a tool used to generate images into videos (archived link).
Visual inconsistencies can also be seen in the clip -- including that explosion not having any impact on the surrounding area -- which strongly indicates a video made using AI.
AFP also debunked numerous misinformation related to the Iran-Israel war (archived link).
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