Fact Check: Iranian oil tanker under attack on June 22? No, video is AI-generated

Hyderabad: In the context of the ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel, a video is going viral on social media with the claim that it shows an attack on an Iranian oil tanker.

In the video, we can see an explosion on top of a ship and huge plumes of smoke spreading in every direction till they engulf the ship. The text on the video reads, “Strike on Iranian oil tanker 22.06.2025” along with an indication that the temperature is 23°C.

The video was shared on Instagram with the caption, “On June 22, 2025, alongside its missile and drone barrage on Israel, Iran publicly threatened to strike US naval forces in Bahrain and to shut down the Strait of Hormuz—key maritime chokepoint—if the U.S. continued its attacks on Iranian nuclear sites. Missile Attack at Sea…While there is no confirmed evidence of an actual missile strike launched at sea on June 22, Iran’s warnings imply a looming threat to U.S. naval operations in the region. (sic)” (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The video is AI-generated.

We did not find any news reports stating that Iranian oil tankers were struck with airstrikes on June 22.

Upon closer inspection of the viral video, we found several inconsistencies that point to AI-generated content: duplication on several objects, absence of shockwave after the explosion, absence of signs of shockwave in the water and unnatural formation and pattern of plumes of smoke. We have also observed that another, smaller ship nearby suddenly emerges out of the smoke, visibly unscathed by the huge explosion.

There is a watermark at the bottom of the video, ‘@laughasores’. Using keyword searches, we found a YouTube channel by the same username.

The description of the channel reads, “Experience the power of nature and beyond through high-quality AI simulations, including tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, bomb explosions, rocket launches and much more.”

The viral video was uploaded on June 3 with the title ‘Military exercise bomb explosion event - AI video’. The description stated that all videos on the channel were created using Artificial Intelligence. “Each video is a fictional simulation of a specific event. These AI-generated videos are often referred to as ‘AI’ or ‘fake’ by viewers.” (Archive)

We analysed two keyframes from the YouTube video using the AI detection tool, Sight Engine, which determined that both frames are 99 per cent likely to be AI-generated.

Therefore, NewsMeter concludes that the viral claim is false. The video is AI-generated.