Decade-old video from China shared as Iran’s missile attack on Israel
A video is circulating on social media with the claim that Tehran has launched a new generation of missiles at Israel. However, a fact-check by Dismislab reveals that the video depicts a series of explosions at a container storage facility in the Binhai New Area of the Port of Tianjin, China, on August 12, 2015.
On March 3, 2026, a video was posted from a Facebook page named “Shantir Dhormo Islam.” The caption stated, “New generation missiles were used in Tehran’s attack on Israel.” The video has received more than 5,200 reactions. The post has been shared 446 times and viewed more than 125,000 times.
In the 49-second video, one horrific explosion after another is seen occurring. A personal profile shared the video with the caption, “What did they hit in Iran! Rose or bomb, I couldn’t understand. The name of the bomb is reportedly HGV. Before Israel’s air defense system could even understand, it was completely shaken up. Don’t know how long Iran can last, but it’s showing unbelievable surprises. ” The video was posted with the same claim across multiple personal Facebook profiles (1, 2, 3, 4) and a page.
A reverse image search of various keyframes led Dismislab to a video published on August 14, 2015, on the BBC’s YouTube channel. The title of the video was “Tianjin explosions video captures witnesses’ terror.”
The detailed description stated, “This footage of two massive explosions in the Chinese city of Tianjin was captured by a stunned eyewitness, vividly depicting the fear and panic of those who witnessed the event. Dozens of people were killed, and hundreds were injured when a fire broke out and caused explosions at a warehouse owned by a company specializing in handling hazardous goods. City authorities stated they are still not certain what types of substances were in the warehouse at the time of the fire or what caused the explosions. Eyewitness Dan van Duren filmed the moment of the explosion, after which he and others moved away to avoid danger.”
The segment at the 1:05-minute mark of the 1:30-minute video is identical to the circulating video. Additionally, multiple other YouTube videos (1, 2) were found in which the explosion scene is visible.
Further verification led to several reports (1, 2, 3) on the explosion scene. According to a report published by the BBC on August 13, 2015, “At least 17 people have been killed and hundreds more injured in horrific explosions in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin. State media reported that the explosions occurred in a warehouse storing ‘hazardous and chemical goods’ in the city’s port area.”
In short, the video circulating with the claim of missiles being fired at Israel is a scene of an event from China that is more than 10 years old.
Dismislab has previously published multiple fact-check reports regarding the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict.
