2017 video shared as 'IDF soldiers run over by a truck' in Israel

What is the claim? 

A 42-second video of a truck plowing into a group of pedestrians is being shared on social media with the claim that it shows a recent incident of a truck crashing into a bus stop in Tel Aviv, Israel.

On October 27, 2024, a truck crashed into a bus stop near an Israeli military base north of Tel Aviv, killing at least one person and injuring dozens. While the circumstances of the attack are yet unclear, the police suspect a terror attack, CBS News reported. According to Reuters, police stated that initial investigations indicate the truck was traveling near the Glilot base when it "veered off course and hit a bus and people waiting at the stop."

A post shared on X (formerly Twitter) featured the viral clip with the caption, "Moment of the operation near the Mossad headquarters in Tel Aviv. Notice all these cowards how instinctively just ran away despite being equipped with weapons?" At the time of writing this fact-check, the post received 2,19,900 views and 2,100 likes. Archived versions of similar posts can be viewed here, here, and here. 

The video is also being shared on Facebook with similar claims. Archives of the posts can be found here and here.  

Screenshot of viral posts circulating on social media. (Source: X/Screenshot/Modified by Logically Facts) 

However, we found that the video is from 2017 and shows a truck attack in Jerusalem that killed four and injured 13.

What did we find?

A reverse image search of the viral clip led us to the same video titled "What you need to know about the truck attack in Jerusalem." The Washington Post uploaded the video on January 9, 2017. At the 1:08 mark, the viral clip can be observed, which reports that the video shows CCTV footage of a truck driving into a group of people in Jerusalem. 

Screenshot of the video posted by The Washington Post (Source: The Washington Post/Screenshot)

Reports from BBC News, Reuters, and Haaretz elaborated that the truck was driven by a Palestinian, who rammed into a group of Israeli soldiers near the Armon Hanatziv Promenade in Jerusalem, killing four and injuring 13. The reports noted that the soldiers were on an educational trip to Jerusalem and that the attacker was shot by one of the soldiers at the scene.

Additional reports from local Hebrew-language media, Ynet and Israel Hayom, also featured images from the viral clip, confirming that it was indeed captured in Jerusalem, not Tel Aviv.

The verdict

A seven-year-old video of the truck attack in Jerusalem is being shared with the misleading claim that it shows moments of a recent truck ramming in Tel Aviv.