Video purported to show Israeli strikes on Iran is old footage from 2024
Video dates back to strikes by Iran on Israel's Nevatim air base in 2024
CLAIM
Video shared on social media purporting to show Israeli drones hitting targets in Iran as the country launched a wave of attacks on the Islamic Republic overnight into June 13.
BACKGROUND
Israel launched a wave of strikes against Iran early on Friday, June 13, which hit nuclear and military facilities, killing at least two top military officers, according to reports.
In a recorded video message, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel launched an operation dubbed “Rising Lion” to target Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and ballistic missile factories.
Iranian state television reported explosions across the country, including in the main uranium enrichment facility in Natanz, and in the capital, Tehran.
Iranian media reported that the leader of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, Gen. Hossein Salami, the chief of staff of Iranian armed forces, Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, and two scientists were killed in the strikes.
According to reports citing the Revolutionary Guard, several children were killed in a strike that hit a residential area in Tehran.
Amid the strikes, footage emerged on social media (archived here) purported to show drone strikes in Iran.
The account sharing the content describes itself as pro-Syria and anti-Assad, and has posted over 24,000 times since its creation in February 2024.
The uploader posted two videos, both of which show weaponry striking targets in an urban area.
METHOD
A reverse image search of the content led the Spotlight team to a video posted on X on October 1, 2024 (archived here), described as showing a 15-minute compilation of “Iranian missiles hitting Israel”.
Comparing the footage shared on June 13, 2025, with that posted on October 1, 2024, Spotlight found the content to be an exact match.
The footage actually shows Iranian missiles targeting Iranian missiles hitting near Israel’s Nevatim air base, after the Islamic Republic launched an offensive in retaliation for a Hezbollah headquarters strike, which killed a Palestinian civilian and injured two others.
This indicates that the footage was not filmed in Iran on June 13, 2025, and dates back to at least October 2024.
Other misuse
This particular piece of content has been misrepresented in several conflicts, mostly recently during Operation Sindoor, after India launched missile strikes on Pakistan on May 7, 2025.
RATING
The footage purporting to show Israeli strikes on Iran has been misrepresented and dates back to Iranian strikes on Israel’s Nevatim air base on October 1, 2024.
SOURCES
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: 15 minutes Iranian missiles hitting Israel … supercut [Accessed 13 Jun. 2025].
X (formerly Twitter). (2025). Available at: موجة امطار ثانية #إيران بتوقيت #أصفهان [Accessed 13 Jun. 2025].
news.com.au (2025).[online] Available at: India launches air-strikes on Pakistan in ‘act of war’. [Accessed 13 Jun. 2025].
Nuki, P. (2024). [online] Available at: Pictured: Damaged hangar at Israel’s Nevatim air base after Iranian missile strike.[Accessed 13 Jun. 2025].