The viral image depicting the tragic scene of dead children is not connected to the recent events in Gaza
On October 13, 2023, a Pakistani X user named Muntazir Mehdi shared a picture of child dead bodies and wrote, These Children of Gaza are asking where is muslim world , OIC ? At least 1,537 Palestinians – including 500 children & 276 women – have been killed and 6,612 injured in the last 6 days of Israel’s alleged bombing of Gaza. Moreover, he also used hashtags like #FreeGaza, #Hamas, #IsraelPalestineConflict.
Another Pakistani X user named Tabi shared the similar picture and wrote, At least 1,537 Palestinians including 500 children &276 women have been killed and 6,612 injured in the last 6 days of Israel’s carpet bombing Gaza Israel has dropped more bombs on Gaza in 6 days than what America used to drop on Afghanistan in a year.
Apart from this X users named UNETED INDIA and Propgandareport also shared the similar picture and made similar claims.
So, is it true that the dead children in the viral picture died due to Israel’s bombing of Gaza? Let’s Fact Check.
During our investigation, our first step was to conduct a reverse image search of the viral picture in order to ascertain its authenticity. In the course of this search, we stumbled upon a National Geographic report dated September 14, 2013, featuring the exact same image that had been shared by multiple users on X. According to this report, the picture depicted a heart-wrenching scene from August 21, where children lay among the deceased outside of Damascus, Syria, shortly after they succumbed to chemical weapon poisoning.
Continuing our investigation, we delved deeper into the viral image’s origins, and our next revelation was equally striking. We uncovered a report by EPOCA, published on July 5, 2018, featuring the very same picture shared by numerous users, including X. According to this report, the image portrays a grim scene from August 21, 2013, in Ghouta, near Damascus, where innocent children had met a tragic end, allegedly due to exposure to nerve-affecting gases.
After this, we came across yet another source featuring the same viral image of deceased children. This time, it was a report by alamy that shed new light on the image’s context. According to this report, the heartbreaking scene captures dead children lying on the ground, their lives tragically cut short. Syrian rebels claim that these innocent lives fell victim to a toxic gas attack allegedly perpetrated by pro-government forces in eastern Ghouta, on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, back on that fateful day, August 21, 2013. However, The Syrian government has denied the claims from the opposition that it has used chemical weapons. The UN is investigating.
Hence, all these points prove that the viral image depicting the tragic scene of dead children is not connected to the recent events in Gaza, nor were these innocent lives lost due to Israel’s bombing. The evidence points us to a different time and place altogether: August 21, 2013, in Syria. It was in Syria, amid the heart-wrenching aftermath of a chemical weapon poisoning, that these young lives were cut short.
| Claim | The dead children in the viral picture died due to Israel’s bombing of Gaza |
| Claimed by | Muntazir Mehdi, Tabi, UNETED INDIA, Propgandareport, etc |
| Fact Check | False |
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