Fact Check: Is the viral video showing a child grieving a fallen US soldier real?
WASHINGTON, DC: Amid the escalating conflict in the Middle East that has led to the death of thirteen US service members, a video began circulating on social media platforms showing a child grieving his father, a soldier who died in the conflict with Iran. The video has sparked speculations about its authenticity. Let us analyze the viral video and fact-check the claim.
Claim: Video shows a child grieving a fallen US service member
The viral video shows a toddler-aged boy crying ‘Daddy’ as he approaches a flag-draped coffin, and a woman follows and tries to console him, saying, “I’m right here, sweetheart.”
The video was shared on Facebook on March 15, accompanied by a caption stating, “A Hero’s Final Farewell: Heartbreaking moment a son says goodbye to his father lost in the Iran conflict.”
The same video also spread on other social media platforms such as X, TikTok, Instagram, and Threads, garnering millions of views as of this writing.
Fact Check: Fake, video is AI-generated
However, the video is fake and is generated using Artificial Intelligence, as verified by AI detection tools and experts. Several accounts sharing the video have even acknowledged that the content is not real and is generated using AI.
According to an analysis by Hive Moderation, an AI detection tool, the video is over 95% likely to be generated using AI.
“At exactly 10-seconds in length, this is typical of AI-generated videos that max out at 10- to 15-seconds in length,” said Hany Farid, a professor and digital forensics expert at the University of California, Berkeley, who also flagged some visual anomalies, such as the child’s hand disappearing into the flag and casket.
If the video were authentic, it would have been widely covered by prominent news media outlets.
Death toll in Iran war rises to thirteen
According to a US military spokesperson, as of Monday, 13 US service members have been killed, and at least 200 have been injured in the US-Israeli war on Iran, of which six crew members died last week when a US military refuelling plane crashed in western Iraq.
“Since the start of Operation Epic Fury, approximately 200 US service members have been wounded,” a US Central Command spokesperson, Cpt Tim Hawkins, said.
“The vast majority of these injuries have been minor,” said Hawkins, adding that 180 troops have since returned to duty, but did not elaborate when asked follow-up questions about what types of injuries service members sustained or their causes.
