Old video shared as recent Lebanon villagers intercepting Hezbollah members

The context

A user on X (formerly Twitter) recently shared a video showing a man being forcibly dragged into a car by a group of angry men. The post was captioned: "Breaking: Lebanese Druze have set up checkpoints in their town to ensure no Hezbollah terrorists try to hide among them." The video quickly gained traction, garnering over 400,000 views on the platform within 24 hours of being shared.

However, this is not a recent event. The footage is from 2021 and is not related to current events in Lebanon.

What we found

A reverse image search of screenshots of the video led us to the same video being posted on social media in August 2021. Arabic-language pan-Middle Eastern media outlets and Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs official X account were among those who circulated the video. For instance, Sky News Arabia journalist Larissa Aoun posted the video on X on August 6, 2021.

A further search using Arabic keywords and location terms revealed that several news outlets had reported on the incident when it first took place. On August 6, 2021, the Lebanese media outlet An-Nahar covered the event and shared another video of the same scene, filmed from a different angle.

According to An-Nahar, the incident occurred after Hezbollah launched a series of rockets from southern Lebanon’s Damascus area, targeting the Shebaa Farms, a disputed region currently under Israeli control. Following the attack, tensions reportedly rose in the town of Chouaya, located in an area of southern Lebanon populated by members of the Druze minority ethnic group. Local residents allegedly intercepted Hezbollah members transporting a rocket launcher and detained them until the Lebanese army arrived. Logically Facts is unable to independently verify the details of An-Nahar's report, which relies on testimony from local witnesses, Hezbollah members, and the Lebanese army at the time.

The video has resurfaced amid the ongoing 2023 Israel-Hezbollah conflict, where heightened tensions have led to a rise in misinformation. Logically Facts has debunked several similar claims related to the conflict, including an old video misrepresented as a recent Israeli attack on Lebanon following pager explosions.

The verdict

The claim that this video shows a breaking news event involving Lebanese Druze villagers intercepting Hezbollah members is misleading. The original footage dates back to August 2021.