Video of Nepalis Collecting Yarsagumba Shared Claiming to Show Israelis Fleeing
A video shows many people running down a hillside; some carrying bags on their shoulders, others with children. Shared on social media, the posts claim this is a scene of Israelis fleeing the country during the Iran-Israel conflict. The same video has been widely shared on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube with identical claims. However, fact-check shows the video is at least two weeks old and actually depicts people in a mountainous region of Nepal collecting a fungus called Yarsagumba.
On Facebook, several users (1, 2, 3, 4) shared the video claiming that after the start of the Iran-Israel conflict, Israelis were fleeing their country in this way. The same claim has also been circulated on YouTube (1, 2, 3, 4), X and Instagram. One viral video on Facebook has been viewed more than 9 million times. The post has been shared more than 32,000 times. It also received more than 13,000 reactions and over 700 comments. In almost every post, emojis of the Israeli flag were used, and the captions read that if Israelis fled in this way at the beginning of the war, who would then be left to handle it.
Reverse image search using keyframes of the video found that the clip had been published on YouTube on June 13, nearly two weeks before the recent Iran-Israel conflict began. On May 30, a YouTube channel named “JumlaNepal” uploaded the video. Both the title and the location tag on YouTube clearly mention Nepal’s Dolpa region. The video’s title was in Nepali, which, when translated, states it shows the collection of a special fungus known as Yarsagumba.
Further verification found a report by Sanjib Chaudhary in Global Voices, which said that every year in May, collection of the fungus Yarsagumba begins in Nepal’s Dolpa region. This fungus is also called “caterpillar fungus” or “Himalayan Viagra.” Because of its medicinal properties, it is highly valuable and in great demand among Nepalis. Starting from the second week of May, when the collection season begins, schools are closed, and men, women and children all participate in gathering the fungus in the mountain areas. The scenes shown in the video are part of this annual collection drive, and has no relation to the Iran-Israel conflict. When contacted, writer Sanjib Chaudhary confirmed that the location is indeed the Upper Dolpo trekking site in the Dolpa mountains of Nepal.
For context, Israel launched an attack on Iran on June 13 this year. Later, Iran carried out counterattacks in several Israeli cities. Reports say that more than 400 people have been killed so far in the conflict between the two states.
Disclaimer: The original version of this fact-check report was published in Bengali on Dismislab’s Bengali website on June 23, 2025. The English translation was completed later; however, to maintain time accuracy and avoid any potential misinterpretation, the English version has been published with the original publication date.
