Fact Check: Houthis hit a Saudi airport. But these videos don't show that!
Old and unrelated videos of explosions are falsely being linked to the July 13 attack on Saudi Arabia's Abha International Airport.
India Today Fact Check
The internationally recognised government of Yemen reportedly attacked the airport in its capital, Sanaa, to stop an Iranian aircraft carrying a delegation of Houthis from landing. Since Saudi Arabia backs the government, the rebel group retaliated on July 13 and launched missiles at the Abha International Airport there.
Several videos allegedly showing this retaliation have now gone viral. Of course, many of these videos are unrelated to the attack. In this story, we will debunk three such clips.
ABHA — BUT OLD
This clip, CCTV footage of an airport terminal, shows a handful of people moving around as usual before an explosion tears through the frame, engulfing the area in fire and smoke. It was shared with captions like, “Surveillance camera footage at Saudi Arabia's Abha Airport capturing the moment of the Houthi rocket's impact.”
We found the clip in several YouTube videos from June 2019 that claimed it showed a Houthi missile at the Abha airport.
A subsequent keyword search led to reports by the BBC and CNN from June 2019. According to them, the Houthis attacked the Abha airport twice in two days that month, injuring 26. Houthi drones and missiles reportedly struck the passenger arrival hall. This confirms the clip is seven years old and unrelated to the July 13 attack.
OLD HOUTHI ATTACK
This video shows a massive fire at a distance captured from a moving car on a bridge. It was shared with claims like, “Abha Airport in Saudi Arabia is now out of service after the recent Yemeni shelling that completely destroyed it.”
But this video is more than four years old. The footage was uploaded to Reuters' official YouTube channel on March 26, 2022. Its description stated that a fire had broken out at a Saudi Aramco petroleum storage facility in Jeddah after a Houthi missile struck it.
DUBAI PORT
This clip showing the aftermath of an explosion, with fire and debris scattered across the area, was shared with captions like, "ABHA airport in Saudi Arabia is on fire after being hit by a missile from Yemen."
We reverse-searched its frames and found the video in a July 2021 post on the Facebook page of Arab News. It was captioned: "Footage from Jebel Ali Port in Dubai after an explosion and a container ship caught fire."
Al Jazeera and Reuters reports dated July 8, 2021, noted the explosion originated from a fire aboard a container ship stationed at the Jebel Ali Port in Dubai. It was reportedly big enough to be felt in neighbourhoods up to 25 kilometres away. But no casualties were reported.
The internationally recognised government of Yemen reportedly attacked the airport in its capital, Sanaa, to stop an Iranian aircraft carrying a delegation of Houthis from landing. Since Saudi Arabia backs the government, the rebel group retaliated on July 13 and launched missiles at the Abha International Airport there.
Several videos allegedly showing this retaliation have now gone viral. Of course, many of these videos are unrelated to the attack. In this story, we will debunk three such clips.
ABHA — BUT OLD
This clip, CCTV footage of an airport terminal, shows a handful of people moving around as usual before an explosion tears through the frame, engulfing the area in fire and smoke. It was shared with captions like, “Surveillance camera footage at Saudi Arabia's Abha Airport capturing the moment of the Houthi rocket's impact.”
We found the clip in several YouTube videos from June 2019 that claimed it showed a Houthi missile at the Abha airport.
A subsequent keyword search led to reports by the BBC and CNN from June 2019. According to them, the Houthis attacked the Abha airport twice in two days that month, injuring 26. Houthi drones and missiles reportedly struck the passenger arrival hall. This confirms the clip is seven years old and unrelated to the July 13 attack.
OLD HOUTHI ATTACK
This video shows a massive fire at a distance captured from a moving car on a bridge. It was shared with claims like, “Abha Airport in Saudi Arabia is now out of service after the recent Yemeni shelling that completely destroyed it.”
But this video is more than four years old. The footage was uploaded to Reuters' official YouTube channel on March 26, 2022. Its description stated that a fire had broken out at a Saudi Aramco petroleum storage facility in Jeddah after a Houthi missile struck it.
DUBAI PORT
This clip showing the aftermath of an explosion, with fire and debris scattered across the area, was shared with captions like, "ABHA airport in Saudi Arabia is on fire after being hit by a missile from Yemen."
We reverse-searched its frames and found the video in a July 2021 post on the Facebook page of Arab News. It was captioned: "Footage from Jebel Ali Port in Dubai after an explosion and a container ship caught fire."
Al Jazeera and Reuters reports dated July 8, 2021, noted the explosion originated from a fire aboard a container ship stationed at the Jebel Ali Port in Dubai. It was reportedly big enough to be felt in neighbourhoods up to 25 kilometres away. But no casualties were reported.