WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Videos show Iranians dancing to celebrate Israeli strikes on their homeland.
OUR VERDICT
False. The clips used to make the claim predate Israel's attack.
AAP FACTCHECK - Social media users on both sides of the Iran-Israel conflict are using fake or out-of-context videos and photos to influence public perceptions of the unrest.
As well as video and photos generated by artificial intelligence (AI), unrelated genuine footage is also being used.
One of the common narratives being pushed is that Iranians are celebrating the strikes on their homeland.
One widely shared Facebook post shows a large crowd dancing outside apartment blocks, with a caption and overlaid text that reads: "UNBELIEVABLE !! Iranians are actually celebrating the Israeli strikes on their monstrous Government."
However, the caption on an Instagram post from March 2025, with what appears to be the same clip, says the footage depicts celebrations for the Zoroastrian fire festival Chaharshanbe Suri in Tehran.
Conducting a reverse image search, AAP FactCheck found a longer version of the video on Instagram, also dated March 2025 - months before Israel's missile strikes on Tehran, which began on June 12, 2025.
A similar claim is made in a Facebook post showing cars stopped in a tunnel and people milling around.
Overlaid text reads, "Day 3 of war Iranians dancing", while the caption reads, "Iranians celebrating their freedom from oppression".
The post is dated June 15, 2025.
A reverse image search shows the video was shared on Instagram as far back as September 2023.
Translated into English by Meta, its caption reads: "It is only an Iranian who can dance and be happy even in the traffic ... Don't you think the traffic is too early considering the holiday weekend?"
Another Facebook video of a woman dancing in the rain has spread widely in recent days.
"An Iranian woman sends a message to the Islamic regime," the caption reads. "We will dance on your grave with all our hearts ... The Islamic regime will perish!"
The clip, however, is not recent and does not depict an Iranian woman.
It was posted on TikTok in July 2023 by a Georgian influencer, who said in a subsequent Instagram post referring to the misrepresented video: "I am Georgian and have no connection to the current situation in Iran and Israel."
A common narrative being pushed from the other side is that the damage caused to Israel is greater than is being acknowledged.
On X, footage of a huge explosion is captioned: "Scenes from Tel Aviv!"
The same video, however, can be found on The Guardian's YouTube page, dated January 24, 2025.
Rather than Israel's capital, it depicts a Russian oil refinery following a Ukrainian drone attack.
"An Iranian attack like Tel Aviv has never seen before," another Facebook post reads alongside a video of a huge fire in an urban setting.
The footage, however, is from China. It matches video published by the BBC of a fire at a motorcycle parking lot in Chongqing.
AI-generated images and videos are also being used, including footage of a supposed missile strike posted by an Australian-based X user.
Earlier use of the clip features an AI watermark, and it has been debunked by AAP FactCheck previously.
Some Facebook accounts have shared images and video claiming to show Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport destroyed by Iranian missile fire.
The pictures and footage in the posts are from video shared on Facebook on June 15, 2025.
AAP FactCheck has traced the imagery to a now-defunct TikTok account that produced AI-generated content.
The same creator still has an account on Telegram, from which the supposed Ben Gurion clip was shared on May 27, 2025 - prior to the beginning of the current Iran-Israel conflict.
AAP FactCheck is an accredited member of the International Fact-Checking Network. To keep up with our latest fact checks, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, BlueSky, TikTok and YouTube.
