Fact Check: Does a video show a Palestinian flag atop Eiffel Tower during Paris riots?
PARIS, FRANCE: Amid reports of violent protests in France, a video circulating on social media has sparked concern by claiming that Paris has fallen.
The video allegedly shows a Palestinian flag flying atop the Eiffel Tower, while the post blames open-border policies and French President Emmanuel Macron's leadership for the situation. The footage has raised questions about what is actually happening in Paris. Let's fact-check the claim.
Claim: Palestinian flag was flying atop the Eiffel Tower during France riots
🚨 PARIS HAS FALLEN. There’s a Palestinian flag on top of the Eiffel Tower. France is burning. Macron left the country. The riots aren’t “mostly peaceful.” This is what open borders and weak leadership get you. America, wake up. This can happen here. Close the borders. Vote. Don’t let them turn our cities into this. https://t.co/8TmkZlDmo9
— John McAfee 🇺🇸 News (@mcafeenew) October 19, 2026
The post continued, “France is burning. Macron left the country. The riots aren’t ‘mostly peaceful.’ This is what open borders and weak leadership get you.” The user concluded by urging Americans to “wake up,” close the borders and vote, warning that similar unrest could occur in the US.
The video is approximately 7.4 seconds long and shows the Eiffel Tower from a low angle against a cloudy sky. It begins with a wide view of the structure, with a large flag waving from the top of the tower.
The flag features horizontal black, white, and green stripes with a red triangle containing a white star, making it visually more similar to the Jordanian flag than the standard Palestinian flag.
A second, larger flag with a similar design hangs from an upper observation platform, apparently secured with ropes. Several people appear on the platform near the hanging flag. The footage focuses on the tower's upper section and the flags waving in the wind.
The video also drew skepticism from other social media users. One user questioned its authenticity, writing, “this a deep fake, the people are too big right.” Another user disputed the claim, stating, “This is not true!!! My friends are there now and everything looks normal..they are having a great time!! Stop it!!”
Fact Check: False, the video is AI-generated
The video is AI-generated and fabricated. Several news outlets have confirmed this using AI detection tools and visual analysis.
The original clip came from an Instagram account that identifies itself as an AI content creator and labeled the video as “unreal content – AI.” No credible French or international news outlets reported such an incident during the October 2026 protests.
A separate incident occurred on May 15, 2026, when Extinction Rebellion activists displayed a Palestinian flag from a lower level of the Eiffel Tower to mark Nakba Day. However, that incident does not match the video circulating online.
The flags shown in the clip appear to combine elements of Palestinian and Jordanian designs. The white star resembles the one on Jordan’s flag, although the clip contains visual inaccuracies, including the number of points on the star.
France did experience significant unrest and violence over the weekend of October 17–19, 2026. Authorities arrested more than 2,000 to 2,500 people, while hundreds of police officers and emergency workers sustained injuries.
The unrest also caused significant property damage, with shops looted and buildings vandalized or set on fire.
