Video of Sudanese army bombing fuel tanker falsely claimed to be from Gaza

By: Umme Kulsum
October 25 2023

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Screenshots of social media posts claiming the Israeli forces bombing Palestinian children near a water tank in East Gaza. (Source: Facebook/X/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts)

What’s the claim?

Amid the ongoing airstrikes in the Gaza Strip as the war between Israel and Hamas enters its third week, a video showing a group of people near large white tanks being bombed is widely circulating across social media platforms. One Facebook user who shared the viral video wrote in Arabic (translated to English), “In #Gaza, while filling water for them to drink, the terrorist Zionists, in their cowardice, throw bombs and missiles at innocent people who are helpless.” The post had gathered over 9,000 views and 200 reactions at the time of writing this story (archive here).

The same video is also viral on X (formally Twitter) with more views and reposts. One user shared the screenshots from the viral video with the caption, “This is earlier today, Palestinians trying to get water in Gaza, the Israeli terrorist. Archive versions of the posts can be found here and here.

Screenshot of claims made online (Source: Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, the video in question is unrelated to the ongoing conflict between Israel-Hamas.

What we found

A reverse image search led us to an X post by Sudan News from October 12. The post contained a longer version of the viral video with a caption in Arabic that said it was Sudan's army targeting a group of Rapid Support Forces. The translated caption read, “An army march targeting a group of Rapid Support militia mercenaries, who gathered to refuel their motorcycles.”

We were also able to find the video posted by Al Jazeera - Sudan on their Facebook page on October 12. Again, the caption was in Arabic, and the translation read, “A Sudanese army march bombed a fuel tanker belonging to the Rapid Support Forces in Khartoum.”

We also found a local report published by Sudan Akhbar, a local news website, that stated the attack took place in the capital, Khartoum.

Screenshot of Al Jazeera report (Source: Facebook/Al Jazeera - Sudan)

We also geolocated the spot to a jet fuel depot located near Khartoum airport in Sudan.

Comparison of Google Earth image and the viral video (Source: Google Earth/X/Screenshots)

Sudan has been embroiled in a conflict between the army and the RSF since mid-April 2023. According to a report by AP, tensions arose between the commander of the armed forces, Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and the commander of the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group, Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, to seek control over the nation and its resources.

In the civil war between the army and the RSF, so far, over 5.6 million people have been driven from their homes, and around 9,000 people have been killed, according to U.N. estimates.

The verdict

The video is neither from the ongoing Israel-Palestine war nor does it show Israeli forces bombing a water tank in East Gaza. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.