An Iranian news agency wanted to use a video to show how effective the attack on Israel was. But what you get most from it is derision.
A dull explosion, then a fireball rises in the distance. The night is lit by countless fires. The air is thick with smoke and smoke. People are crying, sirens are wailing. All of this can be seen in a video that the Iranian news agency Tasnim shared on the short message service X. It is intended to show the extent of the destruction caused by Iran’s attack on Israel and was also shown on Iranian state television.
The problem: The city that is engulfed in flames and chaos in the recordings is not actually in Israel, but is Valparaiso in Chile, over 13,000 km away. The video was shot at the beginning of February while Chile was being hit by devastating forest fires. Read more here. The fact that the people in the video spoke Spanish to each other makes it clear that this is not a city in Israel.
Users first thought the video showed Texas
Several users noticed the use of the wrong video and commented on it on the news agency’s post. Many users initially assumed that the video would show a fire in Texas, as it was already circulating at the beginning of March and it was claimed that it was footage from Texas.
Israel’s official X account then shared a statement saying the video was fake. Other anti-Israel accounts also spread the video on social networks. The Iranian regime’s actual attack was significantly less effective. According to the Israeli army, 99 percent of all projectiles were intercepted. Read more about the Israeli defense system here.
The Iranian News Agency post is still online, but the video has been replaced.
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