False claims of assassinations and fires: The videos claiming to show Iranian missile impacts in Israel
Viral rumours about Tel Aviv's destruction and an alleged cover-up about the deaths of Benjamin Netanyahu and Itamar Ben-Gvir were among the unverified claims circulating on week two of the war
CLAIM: Videos purported to show damage and missile impacts in Israel amid its war with Iran. Unverified rumours accompanied them about the purported deaths of high-profile Israelis.
BACKGROUND: Little information about the impact of Iranian attacks in Israel was emerging, and the country is known to have a strong air defence system and a military censor.
METHOD: Reverse image searches revealed videos to be old and unrelated to the war. No official communication was released to confirm the deaths of any high-profile figures.
RATING: Videos being shared claiming to show damage and fires in Israel were false.
As the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran entered its second week, unverified rumours began circulating on social media that Israel has been hit harder than had previously been thought.
The speculation came amid continued Iranian drone and missile attacks on Israel as well as countries in the Gulf region. While evidence of significant damage was emerging from Iran, where the U.S. and Israel were striking, there was little indication that the Iranian attacks against Israel were having as much of an impact.
Since the start of the war with Iran on February 28, the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies — an independent think thank affiliated with Tel Aviv university — puts the deaths in Israel at 14, 12 of whom were civilians and two soldiers. More than 2,600 people have been injured in Israel so far, the institute reported.
Israel’s Iron Dome air defence system is known to be among the world’s most effective. The Israeli military was posting frequent alerts that were being sent to phones across the country, warning residents to retire to bomb shelters amid incoming attacks.
There are international journalists in Israel and news reports are coming out of the country, but all journalists and members of the public are subject to a military censor. The rules for the censor relate to the prohibition of broadcasting material that could pose a national security threat or reveal sensitive information.
A report by CNN, which operates in Israel, outlined that the rules are “particularly sensitive during wartime”, adding: “The military censor has made clear that broadcasting any images that reveal the location of interceptor missiles or military sites hit by enemy projectiles is forbidden, especially in live broadcasts.”
While Israel is not the only country to impose restrictions on news media during a war, it is perhaps this system that has fanned widespread rumours that there has been far more damage in the country than has been openly revealed.
Rumours of political figures’ homes under attack
This week, one of the big themes on social media has related to this suspected undisclosed damage. Some of the posts have gone further, with claims that senior political figures and their families have been targeted in the attacks.
One video that circulated widely across multiple accounts on English social media and on Farsi and Arabic language channels showed a house on fire, with captions saying that Benjamin Netanyahu’s brother Iddo Netanyahu had been killed after Iranian missile strikes on his family home.
The video is old and unrelated to the current war. A reverse image search revealed it was posted on Facebook on February 10, with a caption that it showed Park Place in Galloway, New Jersey. From there, the house is easy to geolocate on Google Maps.
Videos from recent years are frequently shared with claims they shows new events, but occasionally very old footage is used for disinformation. On March 9, a video that is almost 25 years old was shared with claims it showed Benjamin Netanyahu’s house after a drone and hypersonic missile attack (post archived here).
The footage actually showed sparks and smoke pouring from New York’s World Trade Center after the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001.
Another wide-reaching hoax involved claims that Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Israeli Minister of National Security, had been killed or injured. Some posts across social media even spread rumours that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been killed. No official statement was released to address the rumours, nor had any trusted news sources reported on any harm to Ben-Gvir or the Netanyahus.
Benjamin Netanyahu has frequently appeared in the media since these claims emerged, and has been releasing video statements via his official channels.
Some of the claims included more detail, such as that Ben-Gvir had purportedly been involved in a ‘car crash’ but that it was a cover-up for an Iranian missile strike on his home. This post outlining that claim had 1.3 million views alone, while another — by the same uploader as the house fire example — had 3 million views.
The car crash theory did not come from nowhere; in 2024, Ben-Gvir was injured in an accident that saw his car flip over. When searching posts on X about Ben-Gvir’s purported ‘death’, old posts relating to that car crash appeared in search results.
Late on March 10, after hours of viral claims about his alleged death, Itamar Ben-Gvir posted on X “I'm alive,” and directed an expletive towards those who claimed otherwise.
Other alleged damage in Israel
There were also more general false claims that images and videos showed damage and fires in Israel.
A video circulating late on Sunday night and throughout Monday showed a gigantic fire engulfing a building on a city street, and was captioned: “Firefighting efforts continue in Tel Aviv, aglow from Iranian missiles.”
The footage was real, but it actually showed flames erupting from a historic train station building in Glasgow, Scotland on March 8. A huge fire engulfed the station after originating in a nearby vape shop, making headlines around the same time as the claims emerged.
Another dramatic video showing flames ripping through a building block was captioned as showing “Israel’s capital, Tel Aviv, has been destroyed by an Iranian attack”. A video post on X elaborated, saying early on March 10: “Tonight Tel Aviv has received the impact of hundreds of high-payload missiles (+1000kg) The consequence is that the city is in flames and without power Israel threatens 5 years in prison for anyone who records these images.”
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Despite high viewership and supportive comments on TikTok, this was another falsely captioned video. Eurovision News Spotlight found snippets of the same video that predates the war, like this version uploaded to Instagram on January 31.
Many more examples of miscaptioned or false images, some AI-generated, showed destroyed urban landscapes and flames rising from alleged strikes, and were shared with captions suggesting they showed places in Israel.
With the conflict now moving past its initial stages and both sides claiming wins, any declarations of disproportionate damage that are not being reported by trusted sources deserve extra scrutiny.
SOURCES
Askew, J. (2024). What are Israel’s air defences? And why are they so effective? [online] euronews. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
Liebermann, O. (2026). How international news outlets report under Israel’s military censor during wartime. [online] CNN. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
X (formerly Twitter). (2026). Available at: “The IDF identified that a short while ago, missiles were launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel…” [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
X (formerly Twitter). (2026). Available at: Benjamin Netanyahu’s brother Iddo Netanyahu has lost his life after Iranian missile strikes on Netanyahu’s family home. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
Facebook.com. (2016). Facebook. [online] Available at: Happening Now: Park Place, Galloway, NJ [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
Spender, T. (2024). Ben-Gvir, Israeli far-right minister, in car accident. [online] Bbc.com. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
X (formerly Twitter). (2026). Available at: BREAKING NEWS ‘israeli’ media unconfirmed reports Itamar Ben Gvir involved in ‘car crash’ when he has actually been killed in an Iranian missile strike on his home. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
X (formerly Twitter). (2026). Available at: So the Israeli media reports Itamar Ben‑Gvir died in a “car crash,” while in fact he’s been obliterated by an Iranian missile strike on his home..... [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
X (formerly Twitter). (2026). Available at: Firefighting efforts continue in Tel Aviv, aglow from Iranian missiles. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
Geddes, J. (2026). Huge fire at Glasgow Central Station prompts evacuations as building collapses. [online] Bbc.com. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
Tiktok.com. (2026). Available at: LOKAL UPDATE -- A tense night in Tel Aviv. Sirens wailed incessantly throughout the city as hundreds of Iranian missiles tried to penetrate air defense systems. TikTok - Make Your Day. [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
X (formerly Twitter). (2026). Available at: Tonight Tel Aviv has received the impact of hundreds of high-payload missiles (+1000kg)… [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
Instagram. (2017). Available at: @mohamedsadaka109: #حريق_الزرايب. [online] [Accessed 10 Mar. 2026].
Youtube.com. (2026). Available at: Prime Minister Netanyahu and Finance Minister Smotrich in a statement to the media [Accessed 11 Mar. 2026].
Youtube.com. (2026). Available at: Scott Myers’ WTC Footage (Enhanced Video/Audio & Doubled FPS) [Accessed 11 Mar. 2026].
INSS. (2026). Dashboard: The Military Campaign Against Iran | INSS. [online] [Accessed 11 Mar. 2026].