By Hazel Gandhi
The image of a father walking with five children amid a scene of devastation is viral online with the false claim that it is a photo from Gaza. BOOM found that the claims are false and the image has been created using genrative-AI.
The Israel-Hamas conflict, which began on October 7 has killed at least 3,195 children, about 40% of the total death toll of 7,703 people. The number of children reported dead has surpassed the annual number of child deaths in any other world conflict since 2019, according to Save the Children. The conflict, that has now entered its fourth week, began after Hamas launched a surprise attack into Israel from Gaza, resulting in retaliatory air strikes and a ground invasion by Israel.
The image shows a father carrying three children on his shoulders, one infant in his arms, and another child holding his hand with the backdrop of a city devastated by bombings. A caption on X (formerly Twitter) reads, "Being a father in Gaza is like this. 💔🇵🇸"
Click here to view the image and here for an archive.
The post is also circulating on Facebook with similar captions.
Click here to view the post.
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FACT-CHECK
BOOM found that the image has been made using generative-AI and is not from the Israel-Hamas conflict.
We noticed a few extra limbs in the image, a common irregularity found in AI-generated images.
We ran the image through AI image detector tools AIOrNot.com and Hive Moderator, both of which suggested that the image was likely generated by AI.
BOOM also reached out to Professor Hany Farid at the University of California, Berkeley, who specialises in digital forensics, misinformation, and AI. Speaking about the image, Prof Farid said, "This image is almost certainly AI-generated. In addition to our models classifying it as AI, there are telltale signs in the image like the misshapen arm of the adult."
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