CLAIM

Viral video of Dubai plane crash in a residential area near Tel Aviv’s airport by Iranian missiles

RATING JUSTIFICATION

The iVerify Pakistan team investigated this content and determined that it is false.

To reach this conclusion, iVerify Pakistan conducted a forensic analysis and reviewed credible international media reporting.

Multiple accounts on social media platform X were sharing a video since April 6, 2026, allegedly showing a Dubai Airbus A380 plane crash in a residential area near Tel Aviv’s airport due to being attacked by Iranian missiles. However, the video is AI-generated and no such incident occurred.

The ongoing conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran began on February 28, 2026, after joint US-Israeli strikes targeted Iranian military, nuclear, and leadership sites. In response, Iran launched hundreds of missiles and drones not only toward Israel but also towards US military bases and allied infrastructure across the Middle East, significantly widening the scope of the conflict.

Iran’s retaliation has included attacks on Gulf countries and strategic energy infrastructure, including ports and oil facilities, leading to regional instability and disruption of global energy supplies, consequently evolving into a broader regional crisis, with Gulf states increasingly affected due to their hosting of US assets and their strategic role in global energy markets.

HOW IT STARTED

On April 6, a pro-Iranian account, based on its past posts, shared a video on X claiming to show an A380 plane crash in a residential area with the caption: “Breaking: A Dubai plane carrying Israeli soldiers crashed into a residential area near Tel Aviv’s airport, killing all the Israeli soldiers, according to reports. During the crash, Israeli media is claiming that the plane was hit by a fragment of an Iranian hypersonic missile.”

The post gained 6.2 million views.

Another pro-Iranian account, based on its past posts and profile picture on X, re-shared the same video the same day with similar captions, gaining 40,000 views.

The same video was also shared by other accounts on X, as can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here, collectively gaining 48,000 views.

METHODOLOGY

A fact-check was initiated due to the video’s high virality and keen public interest in the conflict between the US, Israel and Iran.

Inspecting the video revealed several visual inconsistencies. Firstly, the Airbus A380, the world’s largest passenger airliner, is seen flying closely over cars and homes. Given the plane’s massive size, the large air propulsion would likely affect the surrounding structures, but they appear unaffected.

Secondly, at the one-second mark, the plane’s wing can be seen clipping directly through the electricity wires and the pole. The wheels are also seen impacting the rooves of some houses which remain undamaged.

Running the clip through AI-detection tools indicated a high likelihood of manipulation, with Hive Moderation assessing it as 99 per cent AI-generated.

Sora AI video detector flagged the video as 33pc AI-generated, suggesting it may have been altered or synthetically manipulated.

Meanwhile, Hive Detection flagged it as 99.4pc AI-generated.

A keyword search confirmed that there were no news reports from credible mainstream international, Emirati or Israeli media outlets regarding a Dubai plane crash in Tel Aviv.

A reverse image search was also conducted to check whether the viral clip had been shared by any credible Israeli or international media outlets in their coverage of the war, but yielded no results.

FACT-CHECK STATUS

The claim that a viral video shows a Dubai plane crash in a residential area near Tel Aviv’s airport due to Iranian missiles is false.

The video is AI-generated, and no such incident had occurred.