TheCable Fact Check
  • Home
  • Fact Check
  • Fake News
  • Check Am For Wazobia
Reading: FACT CHECK: Viral clip showing downed helicopters NOT affiliated with Israel-Hamas war
Share
Latest News
Seven ways to detect an AI-generated video
BLIND SPOT: Nigeria’s shortcomings in the age of AI scams
The rise of deepfakes and the fight for digital truth
DISINFO ALERT: Health ministry debunks AI video claiming free nationwide diabetes treatment
Video wey show as ‘security operatives’ dey break into apartment no be from south-east
Íhé ńgósị́ ébé ńdị́ ǹché nà-ákpáká ụ́lọ̀ ésiteghị nà south-east
Ìṣẹ̀lẹ tí àwọn ‘òṣìṣẹ́ elétò ààbò’ fẹ́ fipá wọ ibùgbé kan kò ṣẹlẹ̀ ní gúúsù ilà oòrùn Nàìjíríà
Bidiyon da ake dangantawa da ‘jami’an tsaro’ da suka kutsa cikin gida ba daga kudu maso gabas ba ne
Advertisement
Aa
TheCable Fact CheckTheCable Fact Check
Search
  • Home
  • Fact Check
  • Fake News
  • Check Am For Wazobia
Follow US

FACT CHECK: Viral clip showing downed helicopters NOT affiliated with Israel-Hamas war

Claire Mom
By Claire Mom Published October 28, 2023 5 Min Read
Share

A viral clip on social media has shown helicopters shot down from the sky by rockets.

Claims trailing the clip allege that they are Israeli helicopters downed by Hamas, the Palestinian militant group, in the ongoing war.

“Israeli helicopters getting smashed,” reads a post by @Sentletse, a verified X user who tweeted to his 273k followers on October 8.

In the video, two helicopters, one above the other, were flying in a countryside location before being hit with missiles and crashing to the ground, eventually bursting into flames.

As of the time of this report, the post has gathered 10.6m views, over 8k likes, 3k comments, 1k comments and bookmarks.

Israeli helicopters getting smashed ???? pic.twitter.com/po5AL4PRoo

— Sentletse ???????????????????????? (@Sentletse) October 8, 2023

 

On October 7, Arun Gangwar, a journalist who claims to have worked with various Indian news outlets including India Daily Live, also posted the same video, while taking sides with Israel via his hashtags.

“#HamasTerrorists Two helicopters of Israel Shot down by Hamas,” Gangwar tweeted.

So far, the post has gathered over 214k views, 489 likes, 150 comments, 95 retweets, and 25 bookmarks.

#HamasTerrorists
Two helicopters of Israel Shot down by Hamas#IsraelUnderAttack #Gaza #Sderot #Israël #Palestine #Israel #Hamas #War #AlMayadeen #Palestine #AlAqsaFlood #طوفان_الأقصى #IsraelUnderAttack #mosad #IndiaWithIsrael #TelAviv #KuShiv #IStandWithIsrael #savas pic.twitter.com/ryeisXoax0

— Arun Gangwar (@AG_Journalist) October 7, 2023

“Hamas fighter shot down two more helicopters of Israel in Gaza Palestine,” reads another X post from @its_ishaq_khan.

Hamas fighter shot down two more helicopter of Israel in Gaza Palestine ✌️#طوفان_الأقصى #อิสราเอล #IsraelUnderAttack #طوفان_الأقصى #طوفان_القدس #อิสราเอล #PalestineUnderAttack #Palestinian #IStandWithIsrael #IsraelAtWar #GazaUnderAttack #Gaza #Hamas pic.twitter.com/N3brnAz5Sx

— Muhammad Ishaq Khan (@ishaq_Mindset) October 8, 2023

 

The post gathered 27k views, 20 comments, 22 likes, and 14 retweets.

BACKGROUND

On October 7, the Hamas militant group infiltrated Israel from Gaza in an unprecedented attack through the air, land and sea, opening another vicious chapter in the age-long, complex crisis between Israel and Palestine.

After the attack, some 1,400 people, the vast majority of them civilians, were killed. Nearly 200 people were also taken hostage.

Gaza which is controlled by the militant group, is a narrow strip of land sandwiched between Israel and the Mediterranean Sea, but with a short southern border with Egypt.

Hamas labelled the attack as “Operation Al-Aqsa Storm” and claimed it was planned for two years.

According to Hamas’ top commanders, more than 5,000 rockets have been launched into Israel in retaliation for the country’s “desecration” of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and the killing of hundreds of Palestinians.

Israel, in return, through Benjamin Netanyahu, its prime minister, vowed that it would annihilate the Hamas militant group and asked residents of Gaza to flee the city as Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) would operate forcefully.

But are the circulating clips on social media affiliated with the Hamas’ attack on Israel?

VERIFICATION

A keyword search on X showed that the videos began to go viral from October 7, the day Hamas launched the surprise attack, and have been in circulation, with the latest shared on October 10.

A reverse image search further showed that an earlier version of the clip was posted on October 3 on YouTube via Kazinka Warrior, a video game community page.

“This is not representative of reality it is just a simulation,” the video’s description said.

A scan through the page showed similar gameplay videos specifically from Arma 3, a military simulation game that takes place in the middle of a futuristic fictional conflict in 2035.

Earlier in 2022, Bohemia Interactive, developers of Arma 3, released a statement saying that viral clips from the video game were falsely attributed to the war in Ukraine.

To differentiate gameplay footage from real-life conflicts, Bohemia Interactive asked individuals to look out for signs including low-resolution clips, unnatural particle effects such as oddly separated cloudlets, shaky camera, and an inability to effectively capture natural-looking humans in motion.

VERDICT

The viral clip showing two helicopters shot down by rockets from the sky is not affiliated with the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. The footage is from Arma 3, a military simulation game.

TAGGED: Arma 3, Fact Check, Israel-Hamas war, military simulation game

Please send your feedback, claims to fact check and corrections requests to [email protected]

Claire Mom December 13, 2023 October 28, 2023
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Email Copy Link Print
Leave a comment Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

POPULAR POSTS

Advertisement

Seven ways to detect an AI-generated video

A video announcing the launch of a free nationwide diabetes treatment recently went viral across Nigerian…

August 13, 2025

BLIND SPOT: Nigeria’s shortcomings in the age of AI scams

It sounded exactly like her, but it was not. Adeola Fayehun was thousands of miles…

August 12, 2025

The rise of deepfakes and the fight for digital truth

BY PRUDENCE OKEOGHENE EMUDIANUGHE On May 30, 2025, a 49-minute video surfaced on a YouTube…

August 12, 2025

DISINFO ALERT: Health ministry debunks AI video claiming free nationwide diabetes treatment

The ministry of health and social welfare has dismissed a viral claim alleging the launch…

August 12, 2025
Advertisement
Advertisement

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

Seven ways to detect an AI-generated video

A video announcing the launch of a free nationwide diabetes treatment recently went viral across Nigerian social media platforms. The clip…

Exclusives & FeaturesFact Check
August 13, 2025

BLIND SPOT: Nigeria’s shortcomings in the age of AI scams

It sounded exactly like her, but it was not. Adeola Fayehun was thousands of miles away in the United States…

Exclusives & FeaturesFact CheckTop Stories
August 12, 2025

The rise of deepfakes and the fight for digital truth

BY PRUDENCE OKEOGHENE EMUDIANUGHE On May 30, 2025, a 49-minute video surfaced on a YouTube channel named Bold Pan-African, seemingly…

Exclusives & FeaturesFact CheckTop Stories
August 12, 2025

DISINFO ALERT: Health ministry debunks AI video claiming free nationwide diabetes treatment

The ministry of health and social welfare has dismissed a viral claim alleging the launch of a free nationwide diabetes…

Fact CheckTop Stories
August 12, 2025

CableCheck seeks to provide reliable tools and resources for readers to tackle the menace of fake and misleading materials constantly pushed into the public space from various sources. We monitor the accuracy of claims made in traditional and social media. We also provide a tracker to hold politicians and policymakers accountable for the plans and promises they make to the public. CableCheck is a project of the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (CNJF), supported by the MacArthur Foundation and implemented by TheCable newspaper.

Follow US: 

LINKS

  • Contact
  • About Us
  • Non-Partisanship Policy
  • Funding
  • Correction Policy
© Copyright TheCable. All Rights reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?