On 13 June 2025, Israel launched attacks on more than a dozen targets across Iran under the codename Operation Rising Lion, with the stated objective of preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Israel reportedly damaged key nuclear facilities and military installations, killing several of Iran’s top military leaders. In retaliation, Iran launched a series of ballistic missiles and drones at Israel under the name Operation True Promise 3. Amid this escalation, several visuals are being shared online claiming to be from the ongoing conflict. Let’s verify them through this article.
Claim: Visuals of the June 2025 conflict between Iran and Israel.
Fact: While the conflict between Iran and Israel in June 2025 is real, these viral videos are either old, unrelated, or digitally altered. These visuals are being falsely circulated as if they depict scenes from the ongoing conflict. Hence, the claims made in these posts are MISLEADING.
Video 1:
A video (here, here & here) claims to show destruction caused by Israel in Iran’s capital, Tehran.
A reverse image search of keyframes from the viral video led us to a longer version uploaded to YouTube on 1 February 2025. The description stated that the footage was from a plane crash in Philadelphia, USA. This confirms the video is unrelated to the Iran–Israel conflict in June 2025. Media reports (here, here, and here) indicate that on 31 January 2025, a Learjet 55 operated by Jet Rescue Air Ambulance crashed near Roosevelt Mall in Northeast Philadelphia, killing seven and injuring at least 19. While we could not independently verify the exact date or location of the video, available evidence indicates that it predates the June 2025 conflict.
Video 2:
A video (here, here & here) of a huge explosion claims to show Israel’s attack on Iran.
Our investigation found that the video has been online since at least May 2025. Media reports featuring the same footage (here, here and here) indicate that it shows a massive explosion at the Marvic Diesel Plant in Cadereyta Jiménez, Mexico, on 21 May 2025. Therefore, the video is unrelated to the Iran–Israel conflict.
Video 3:
A video (here, here & here) claims to show a huge explosion in Tel Aviv, Israel, following a strike by Iran’s missile.
A reverse image search of keyframes from the viral video led us to the original full-length version uploaded on 7 October 2024 by the Instagram page ‘aleksey__n’. The page, belonging to a digital creator, states that the video is an animation. Therefore, it is unrelated to the Iran–Israel conflict.
Video 4:
A video (here, here & here) claims to show Iran’s attack on targets in Israel with drones.
Our investigation revealed that the video is from October 2022 (here and here), when Russia carried out a strike on Ukraine with Iran-made Kamikaze drones.
Video 5:
A video (here, here & here) claims to show Israel burning after an Iranian attack.
Our investigation revealed that the video is from November 2024 (here and here), showing a fire in central Israel following a Hezbollah attack. Therefore, it is unrelated to the Iran–Israel conflict in June 2025.
Video 6:
Another video (here, here & here) claims to show a massive fire in Tel Aviv after an Iranian attack.
We found that, according to Chinese and international media (here, here & here), the visuals show a large fire that broke out at a motorcycle parking facility in Chongqing, China, on 11 June 2025. The blaze was reportedly extinguished within 21 minutes, and no casualties were reported, according to the Jiulongpo District Fire and Rescue Bureau. The cause is under investigation.
To sum it up, old and unrelated visuals are falsely linked to the June 2025 Iran-Israel conflict.
