Visuals of buildings demolished in China are falsely shared as Israeli Attack on Gaza - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 19, 2023
A video showing the collapse of multiple skyscrapers is making the rounds on social media, with claims that it shows an Israeli attack on Gaza. In this article, we will fact-check this claim and unearth the truth.
Claim: The video shows Israel’s attack on Gaza.
Fact: The video in question predates the recent Israel-Palestine conflict (7 October 2023). It has been found on platforms such as Reddit and YouTube, identified as the demolition of 15 unfinished buildings in Kunming, China. Reports from August 2021 confirm the blasting and demolition of these buildings in Kunming. Therefore, the claim made in the post is False.
On running a reverse image search of the video, we came across the same clip on Reddit and YouTube, where it was identified as the demolition of 15 unfinished buildings in Kunming, China.
To further verify this, we performed a keyword search online, leading us to a few news reports (here and here) from August 2021. These reports stated that 15 unfinished buildings in Kunming were destroyed in a controlled implosion.
There is a clear gap between the time this video was available on the internet and the recent conflict between Israel and Palestine, which began on 7 October 2023. Thus, the clip cannot possibly depict an event from that conflict.
To sum up, the video in question does not depict an Israeli attack on Gaza, but rather shows a series of controlled demolitions in Kunming, China, in August 2021.