On social media, an image of a massive smoke emitting from the flames of fire has gone viral. While sharing the image users wrote “Tel Aviv is lit up in flames”.
Moreover, several users shared this video and made similar claims. The link can be seen here, here and here
Fact Check
During the investigation, DFRAC found that the claim was false. We found multiple reports carrying this image. ‘Lokmattimes’ report published on 23 March, 2024 depicted this image and stated: “More than 60 people were killed in Friday’s terrorist attack in Moscow’s Crocus City Hall, according to the Investigative Committee of Russia (ICR) as quoted by media reports”.
Furthermore, we also found a report from ‘Ukrainetoday’ with the same image, published on 23 March, 2024 stating “The terror attack at the Crocus City Hall concert hall in Krasnogorsk in the suburbs of Moscow could be an operation run by Russia’s own security agencies, with the aim of putting the blame on Ukraine and justify a massive military mobilization of the population”.
Conclusion
It is evident from the DFRAC’s fact check that the viral image was from terrorist attack in Moscow’s Crocus City Hall, not from Tel Aviv. Therefore, the claim of social media users is misleading.
