Claim: A Facebook video shows Hamas’s A-Qassam Brigade destroying Israeli army’s tanks.
Fact: The claim is false as the footage is from a video game simulation, Arma 3.
The video shows armed tanks on a deserted road and caught on fire after they were struck by missiles.
What’s going on in Gaza?
On 7 October 2023, the Al Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, launched a “surprise attack” on Israel via sea, land, and air. In response, the Israeli government formally declared war on Hamas on 8 October 2023.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 14,800 Palestinians have been killed and over 36,000 injured since the 7 October attack. Similarly, at least 1,200 Israelis have been killed and upwards of 5,400 injured. As per the latest updates, a four-day humanitarian pause between the Israeli army and Hamas came into effect on 24 November morning in all areas of the Gaza Strip, temporarily stopping attacks in exchange for the release of hostages, prisoners and aid.
Fact or Fiction?
On 30 October 2023, a Facebook user posted a video (archived) with an Urdu language caption,
القسام کی بڑی کاروائی غزہ میں گھسنے والے اسرائیلی ٹینکوں پر کامیاب حملہ ،
متعدد ٹینک تباہ کر دئیے ۔
Translation [Al-Qassam’s major operation was a successful attack on Israeli tanks entering Gaza. Many tanks were destroyed.]
To investigate, Soch Fact Check conducted a reverse image search on the keyframes of the video and found a video stimulation posted on YouTube here.
The channel PRO LRR makes videos of real scenarios by using the Arma 3 video game simulator. The description of the YouTube video reads, “Hezbollah anti-tank missiles destroyed all Israeli tanks entering the Lebanese border. This video is a virtual game simulation. The battle simulation may differ from the actual one. We simulate articles that appear in the news. ARMA Game Play Video.”
The corresponding scene can be seen at the 1:03 mark of the video.
It is also worth noting that the video simulates the Lebanese border and the attack by Hezbollah but does not depict or portray the Gazan landscape or present any evidence of a real incident of Hamas attacking Israeli armed tanks inside Gaza.
Since the onset of the Israel-Gaza war, many similar video game clips claiming to show Hamas’ attack on Israel have been shared as real footage and have been debunked by Soch Fact Check.
Virality
The video game clip was shared as real footage here, here, here and here on Facebook.
On X (formerly Twitter), a page @TurkiyeUrdu_ posted the same claim and it received 442.6k views, 16k likes and 7.5k reposts. The archived versions can be seen here and here.
Conclusion: The video showing Hamas attacking Israeli armed tanks in Gaza is not real footage of an actual attack as it was made using a video game simulator known as Arma 3.
Background image in cover photo: Tzahi V
To appeal against our fact-check, please send an email to appeals@sochfactcheck.com