#FactCheck-Old Saudi Arabia Fire Video Falsely Shared as Footage of Recent U.S. Attack on Iran

Research Wing
Research Wing
Innovation and Research
PUBLISHED ON
Jul 20, 2026
10

Executive Summary

As tensions between the United States and Iran continue to escalate in West Asia, a video showing a massive fire engulfing an industrial facility is being widely circulated on social media. Several users claim that the footage shows the aftermath of a recent U.S. strike on Iran. CyberPeace Research Wing’s research found the claim to be false. Our research revealed that the viral video is not related to the current U.S.-Iran conflict. It actually shows a 2022 attack on Saudi Arabia's Aramco petroleum distribution facility in Jeddah, carried out by Yemen's Houthi rebels.

Claim

An X user shared the viral video on July 16, 2026, claiming that it shows a recent American attack on Iran. https://x.com/SonOfBharat7/status/2077823734069826027 , https://perma.cc/RPA9-YZ3C 

Fact Check

To verify the claim, we extracted keyframes from the viral video and conducted a reverse image search using Google Lens. During the research, we found that the same video had been uploaded by Reuters on March 26, 2022. According to Reuters, Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for attacks on Saudi Arabia's energy facilities. Reuters reported that the Saudi-led coalition confirmed an attack on Saudi Aramco's petroleum products distribution station in Jeddah, where two storage tanks caught fire. The incident caused significant damage but no casualties were reported. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CAxj5tgZ_w

For further verification, we found another video of the same incident uploaded by the Qatar Day Facebook page on March 25, 2022, showing the fire from a different angle. According to the post, a massive blaze broke out at an oil depot in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, after Yemen's Houthi rebels launched multiple drone and missile attacks targeting Saudi infrastructure. Thick black smoke could be seen rising over the city.

Additionally, The Sun also uploaded the same footage on March 26, 2022, identifying it as the attack on Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFj5nDL0y7o

Conclusion

Our research found that the viral video does not show a recent U.S. attack on Iran.Although the United States and Iran have recently exchanged military strikes and attacks on civilian infrastructure have been reported, the viral footage predates the current conflict by several years. It actually shows the March 2022 Houthi attack on Saudi Aramco's petroleum distribution facility in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Therefore, the claim linking the video to the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict is false and misleading.

PUBLISHED ON
Jul 20, 2026
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