Claim
Viral video shows Lebanese people hailing Israeli forces, urging them to liberate them from Hezbollah.
Fact
Viral video dates back to October 9, 2023, shows Israeli civilians supporting their troops as they prepare to respond to Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Several social media users are circulating a 1-minute 35-second video, claiming it shows Lebanese citizens welcoming Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers on the streets of Lebanon. “The people of Lebanon…waved Israeli flags, gave water bottles and breakfast to the soldiers and said free us from Hezbollah. But on the other hand, I don’t know why some people in India consider #HezbollahTerrorists as their father?” read one X post.
The archived version of the post can be seen here.
Israel Steps Up Offensive
Israel reportedly said it is expanding its ground operation in Lebanon with the deployment of a fourth division after another night of intense airstrikes across the south and east of the country. Launching what it has called Operation Northern Arrows last week, the Israeli army said the ground offensive would involve “limited, localised and targeted raids” to remove Hezbollah infrastructure along the disputed de facto border between the two countries, known as the blue line.
Fact Check
Newschecker first ran a keyword search for “Lebanese citizen welcoming Israeli soldiers”, which did not lead us to any credible news reports of such an incident.
We then ran a reverse image search of keyframes of the video, which led us to this X post, dated October 9, 2023, sharing the same video and stating that it shows Israelis hailing their troops. “Countless #Israelis show their love to the @IDF soldiers, including setting up refreshment stops, as they prepare to defend the country from Palestinian terrorists,” read the post.
Similar posts can be seen here, here and here, confirming that the viral video predates the fresh Israel-Hezbollah clashes and that it actually shows Israeli civilians encouraging their soldiers in the aftermath of Palestinian militant group Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which had escalated into a larger conflict between the country and Hamas, leading to a prolonged military and humanitarian crisis.
Conclusion
2023 video of Israeli civilians supporting IDF troops as they prepare to respond to Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel goes viral with a false claim.
Result: False
Sources
X post, StandWithUs, October 9, 2023
Instagram post, Elad Zohar, October 9, 2023
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