By Rachael Kennedy
Oct 9 (Reuters) - Misinformation has spread online following Hamas' surprise attack on Israel from Gaza and Israel’s response with air strikes, as the two sides continued to battle.
During a major event like armed conflict, many social media users share misleading or baseless claims, including miscaptioned imagery or altered documents, in an effort to shape public perception. Reuters has fact-checked some of the widely shared claims in English, Hebrew and Arabic languages.
MISCAPTIONED PARACHUTE GLIDERS When Hamas launched the Oct. 7 surprise attack, militants backed by rocket fire flew into Israel on paragliders. But thousands of people on social media wound up watching unrelated footage of Egyptian paratroopers skydiving over the Egyptian Military Academy in Cairo.
“WATCH: Hamas gunmen can be seen paragliding into Israeli music festival and launch a massive deadly attack,” wrote one verified user on X who shared the clip.
BIDEN’S $8 BILLION AID THAT WASN’T
U.S. President Joe Biden has offered Israel “all appropriate means of support” and is moving military ships and aircraft physically closer, Reuters reported. However, Biden has not authorized $8 billion in military aid for Israel, as some people online have falsely claimed. The claim is pinned to an altered image of a White House memorandum from July, in which Biden approved $400 million of aid to Ukraine.
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