Viral Video Falsely Claimed to Show Indian Army Attack on Sialkot

Fact Check: Viral video falsely claimed to show Indian Army attack on Sialkot

Fact Check en Featured Misleading-en

Amid rising tensions between Pakistan and India along the border, several unverified videos and claims are surfacing on social media, further fueling misinformation. One such video is being shared with the claim that it shows the Indian Army attacking Sialkot, Pakistan.

A video is being widely circulated on social media with the claim that it shows new footage released by Al Jazeera of the Indian Army attacking Sialkot, Pakistan.

Another user was also found who shared a similar claim along with the video, which can be viewed here.

Fact Check

Upon investigation, this claim is found to be misleading.

A reverse image search of keyframes from the viral video led to a report by The Irish Sun, dated November 10, 2023. The report contained the same visuals seen in the viral video and described them as footage showing an Israeli airstrike targeting what was identified as Hamas’ terror headquarters near a Gaza hospital. The event took place in the context of Israel’s “pressure cooker” bombing strategy near the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza.

Screenshot of a news article from The Sun titled ‘RAISING FIRE: Dramatic moment Israeli airstrike pounds Hamas terror HQ in pressure cooker bombing to clear civilians from hospital.’ The article, published on November 10, 2023, by Juliana Cruz Lima, reports on an Israeli military airstrike in Gaza targeting alleged Hamas command centers beneath hospitals. The video thumbnail shows a large fiery explosion at night near white tents and trees, with a person running in the foreground. The intense flames and destruction suggest a conflict zone scenario. This same video footage has been misattributed on social media as an Indian Army attack on Sialkot, Pakistan, highlighting the spread of misinformation during times of geopolitical tension.

Further verification revealed that the visuals were credited to Al Jazeera and Twitter.

A subsequent search of Al Jazeera’s media coverage confirmed this. A report published by Al Jazeera on November 11, 2023, included the same visuals and reported on Israeli bombardments that struck several hospitals in northern Gaza on November 10, 2023.

Conclusion

The viral claim that the video shows an Indian Army attack on Sialkot is false. The footage depicts Israeli airstrikes in Gaza from 2023. Therefore, the claim is misleading and not based on factual evidence.