In the context of the recent Iran-Israel conflict, a video has been circulated on social media with the caption: “A breathtaking scene—the people of Iran have taken to the streets, gathering in front of a power plant. The goal is singular—to protect the country’s energy infrastructure and build resistance against a potential US-Israeli attack. Tensions are at their peak, but the presence of the people serves as a strong message—’We are ready.'”
In other words, it is claimed that the circulated video depicts scenes of the Iranian public taking to the streets and gathering in front of a power plant amidst the recent Iran-Israel conflict.
See the posts circulated on Facebook with this claim Here, Here.
Fact-Check
An investigation by the Rumor Scanner team has revealed that the circulated video does not depict a real event of the Iranian public taking to the streets in front of a power plant during the recent Iran-Israel conflict. In reality, the video was created using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
While investigating the discussed video, the original video was found on an Instagram account with the username ‘elnaz555’, published on January 11. The caption of the post regarding the video stated: “‘All eyes on Iran | A video has emerged of a massive crowd lighting up their smartphone flashlights on the dark streets of Tehran, turning the darkness into a luminous arena of thousands of tiny human signals. This moment inspired me to recreate the scene using artificial intelligence (AI). This work is not a substitute for reality, but rather a reflection of it—especially when the whole of Iran is subjected to a digital blackout, this is a way to comprehend what is actually happening in the country.” (Translated)
Therefore, according to the post’s caption, the video was created using AI. Furthermore, observing Elnaz Mansouri’s aforementioned Instagram account reveals that various other AI-generated content has been published there at different times. Additionally, a closer inspection of the circulated video reveals anomalies in human gestures, lighting, reflections, and surrounding conditions, which are typical of content generated by artificial intelligence technology.
Moreover, analyzing the discussed video with the AI content detection platform ‘Hive Detect‘ shows a 99 percent probability that the video was generated by AI.
During the investigation, a fact-check report was also found on the website of the fact-checking platform ‘AFP Fact Check’ regarding the discussed video, which confirms that the video was created with AI. The AFP Fact Check report further adds: “Mansouri confirmed in a direct message to AFP on January 13 that she created the video using AI. She also mentioned on Instagram and X that it was generated by artificial intelligence. There, she explained that she created it with the intention of reflecting the reality on the ground in Iran following a digital blackout or internet shutdown.” (Translated)
Analyzing the above evidence confirms that the circulated video is not authentic but rather created using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Therefore, the video circulated with the claim that it shows the Iranian public taking to the streets and gathering in front of a power plant amidst the recent Iran-Israel conflict is, in fact, created using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Sources
- Elnaz Mansouri – Instagram Post
- Hive Detect
- AFP Factcheck – Video of Iranian protesters raising phone lights is AI creation
- Rumor Scanner’s analysis