FACT CHECK: 'Video' of Israel-Hamas war uses clip from shooting game

Claim: A video shows airstrikes and explosions during a fight between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: As of writing, the Facebook video has over 7.6 million views, 58,000 reactions, 3,600 comments, and 5,100 shares.

The video’s caption says “Israel-Hamas War LIVE israel palestine conflict.”

The bottom line: Parts of the video shows a clip from the open-world tactical shooter simulation game Arma 3, developed and published by game studio Bohemia Interactive. Pavel Křižka, Bohemia Interactive’s public relations manager, told Rappler that the domes shown at the video’s 6:37 and 7:58 timestamps are from the game.

“These domes are signature landmarks of Arma 3 terrain. Therefore, I can confirm this part of footage was shot in Arma 3 video game,” Křižka told Rappler through email.

Israel-Hamas war: The conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group started on October 7, when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, sending a barrage of rockets from the Gaza Strip. The Gaza Strip is home to 2.3 million Palestinians who have lived under an Israeli blockade for 16 years.

In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war on the group and launched airstrikes in Gaza. (FAST FACTS: Hamas, the Palestinian militant group ‘at war’ with Israel)

The ongoing war is the latest in a decades-long conflict between Israel and Hamas. According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency’s October 26 report, over 7,000 people have died in the conflict and over 600,000 were forced to leave their homes. (TIMELINE: Conflict between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza)

As Israel prepares for a ground invasion, aid agencies continue to call for safe passage to deliver critical humanitarian aid.

Growing disinformation: False claims about the Israel-Hamas conflict continue to spread on social media, with videos and images being taken out of context and presented as real representations of the current war. (READ: What you need to know about disinformation in the Israel-Hamas war)

According to a report from NewsGuard, a website providing tools and analysis to counter disinformation, “verified” accounts on X are superspreaders of disinformation.

Rappler has debunked several false claims about the Israel-Hamas conflict:

– Lorenz Pasion/Rappler.com

Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. You may also report dubious claims to #FactsFirstPH tipline by messaging Rappler on Facebook or Newsbreak via Twitter direct message. You may also report through our Viber fact check chatbot. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.

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