Tension has surged as the US has sent a naval ‘armada’ toward Iran, issued sanctions on Iranian oil tankers and warned Tehran over protests and nuclear activities. Iran has responded with military threats and defiance, raising fears of escalation while regional diplomacy continues.
In the above context, a video is being widely shared in which a man in clerical attire is seen burning the US flag.
Many social media users shared the video with a caption suggesting that it shows a recent conflict in the Iranian Parliament.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “American flag was burnt in Iran’s Parliament.” (Translated from Hindi)
SouthCheck found that the claim is misleading. The viral video is from 2018, from Iran, when the US withdrew from the nuclear deal.
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the same video was shared by the Facebook page of NBC News on May 9, 2018, with a caption that reads, “Iranian lawmakers set fire to the U.S. flag inside the country’s parliament following President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear agreement.”
We found that the video was also shared by Euro News on May 9, 2018, with a caption suggesting that the lawmakers staged the demonstration on Wednesday morning, the day after Trump announced he was ditching the 2015 nuclear deal.
The report associated with the video stated that in May 2018, hard-line Iranian lawmakers burned a paper US flag inside Iran’s parliament and chanted “Death to America” to protest President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA). They also burned a paper copy of the agreement, while the parliament speaker criticised the US exit and urged other world powers to uphold the pact.
A screenshot of the video was also shared by Business Insider on May 9, 2028.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral claim is misleading.
