Social media users are claiming drone footage shows Israel dropping a bomb on children at a water tank in Gaza.
The claim is false. The video shows an attack on militants at fuel tanks in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan.
Following analysis of the footage, AAP FactCheck managed to match the aerial images to a fuel depot near Khartoum International Airport.
It is the latest piece of disinformation relating to conflict in the Middle East.
The footage is being shared on Facebook, examples here and here. It shows a bomb being dropped on a group gathered around four large tanks.
One post states: “A group of children gather at the water tank in eastern Gaza to get drinking water. The Israeli enemy is lurking for them from the air and throws a firebomb on them, killing them.”
Another states: “After seeing this scene, even a stone heart will hate Israel. A group of children gathered near a water tank in eastern Gaza to get drinking water when an Israeli bomb fell and they were martyred.”
The posts are dated October 22 and 23. The same footage was shared on X (formerly Twitter) on October 12, claiming it was an army attack on “Rapid Reaction Forces” militia in Sudan.
It was also shared on Reddit around the same time, claiming to be footage of a Sudanese army drone hitting militia fighters with an 82mm mortar round while they were siphoning petrol at a fuel depot.
AAP FactCheck took screenshots of the footage and did a Google image search, which revealed posts linking the bombing to Israel, plus older posts linked to Sudan – as seen here, here and here.
The search also led to the Al Jazeera Sudan Facebook page, which has a news item from October 12 showing the bombing in Khartoum, using the same footage. A translation of the post states: “A Sudanese army march bombed a fuel tanker belonging to the Rapid Support Forces in Khartoum …”
The fighting in Khartoum is between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Reuters reports tension had been building between the two forces for months, after they both toppled a civilian government in an October 2021 coup.
In an attempt to confirm the footage is from Khartoum, AAP FactCheck searched for the location on Google Maps.
The site in the Facebook videos is distinctive – four large tanks in total, three of them in a row, and each of them fenced off.
There are also what appears to be several small planes in a field to the top right of the image.
AAP FactCheck searched the surrounds of Khartoum’s various airports for a match.
The site can be clearly seen on Google Maps here, to the west of Khartoum International Airport.
By choosing “Globe view” by following the “Layers” link, the image can be spun around to align with how the site looks in the footage.
The Verdict
The claim a video shows an Israeli bombing of Palestinian children gathered at a water tank in eastern Gaza is false.
It shows footage of the Sudanese military bombing the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces at an airport fuel depot in the capital Khartoum, as reported by Al Jazeera Sudan on October 12.
Google Maps confirms the site of the bombing is in Khartoum.
False — The claim is inaccurate.
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