Video edited with motion graphics software falsely linked to Thailand-Cambodia conflict

Published on July 31, 2025 at 06:08
3 min read
By Anne CHAN, AFP Hong Kong

As a long-running border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia boiled over into intense fighting in July 2025, a video was shared in posts falsely claiming it showed a Thai airstrike on its Southeast Asian neighbour. The clip has in fact circulated on YouTube since May 2023, with the user who shared it saying it was created using motion graphics and visual effects software.

"Thai F-16s scramble urgently, complete counterattack in 20 minutes," reads simplified Chinese text superimposed over a Red Note video shared on July 25, 2025.

The video appears to show a fighter jet swooping over a city and firing a missile at a building, causing a huge explosion.

Its caption adds: "Breaking! Cambodian military fired rockets at Thai civilian areas twice. In response, Thailand immediately deployed six F-16 fighter jets. They completed the mission, and returned safely within just 20 minutes."

Screenshot of the false Red Note post captured on July 30, 2025, with a red X added by AFP

The same clip was also shared on other Chinese social media platforms, including Douyin and Weibo.

It surfaced as a long-standing dispute over contested border temples boiled over into open combat on Thailand and Cambodia's 800-kilometre (500-mile) frontier on July 24.

After five days of fighting that killed at least 43 people on both sides, the nations agreed to a ceasefire starting from July 29 (archived link).

While the Thai military did scramble F-16 jets during the latest conflict, the circulating video does not show an airstrike on Cambodia (archived link).

A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the falsely shared video led to several social media posts claiming it showed airstrikes carried out elsewhere, such as during the four-day conflict between India and Pakistan in May.

The earliest version of the video was posted on the "Unreal vfx" YouTube channel on May 16, 2023 (archived link).

In the video's description, the user says it was made with Adobe After Effects -- motion graphics and visual effects software.

In response to comments asking if the video showed real-life footage, they said it was motion graphics.

Screenshot comparison of the falsely shared video (left) and the YouTube clip posted in May 2023 (right)

The user also posted two other videos using the same background with different effects -- one showing the building being struck by a meteor, causing an identical explosion to the one seen in the falsely shared clip (archived here and here).

Screenshot comparison of the three videos shared by the YouTube user showcasing different visual effects on the same background

AFP has also debunked other misinformation related to the conflict between Thailand and Cambodia.

Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.

E-mail