Image of 'Alligator Alcatraz' is AI-generated
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Screenshot of the false post shared on Australian social media. The image was captured on July 22, 2025, and the red cross was added by AFP.
The same image was shared by other Facebook users around the world, including in the United States, Canada and Greece.
It did not just stay on social media -- several websites also published the image alongside articles about Trump's visit.
The image circulated as Trump toured a new migrant detention centre in Florida in early July (archived here and here).
The new facility, dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz", is built at the disused Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport deep in the Everglades, surrounded by swamps that are home to creatures including alligators and poisonous snakes.
is a reference to Alcatraz Island, the former prison in San Francisco.
of the Trump administration's determination to look tough as it pursues its policy of mass deportations of undocumented migrants.
Some users in Australia appear to believe the image is genuine.
"I wish the Australian government would put their foot down on immigration. Love this idea," a user wrote.
Another commented, "That is A Huge Active Moat! surrounding it. At Their Peril if they try to Escape!"
Inauthentic picture
But the image is not a genuine depiction of the Florida detention centre, according to satellite images from Google Maps, which depict the location without a moat (archived link).
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Screenshot comparison between the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in Florida shown on Google Maps (left) and the image shared on social media (right). The red cross was added by AFP. The images were captured on July 23, 2025.
Pictures taken by AFP photographer Chandan Khanna on July 7, 2025 showing aerial views of the detention facility and its surrounding area also bear no resemblance to the circulated image.
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Comparison between an aerial view of the migrant detention center taken on July 7, 2025 by AFP photographer Chandan Khanna (left) and the image shared on social media (right). The red cross was added by AFP.
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Comparison between an aerial view of the migrant detention center taken on July 7, 2025, by AFP photographer Chandan Khanna (left) and the image shared on social media (right). The red cross was added by AFP.
Other media outlets also published photos and footage that do not match the AI-generated image (archived here and here).
Several visual inconsistencies suggest the image is fabricated, including the shape of the reptiles in the water, making them unlikely to be alligators.
It also appears that several vehicles have a crumpled appearance, while one of them -- located to the right of the image -- has a misplaced window.
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Screenshot of the AI-generated image, with some visual inconsistencies highlighted using a magnifying tool by AFP
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Screenshot of the AI-generated image, with visual items highlighted using a magnifying tool by AFP
AFP Fact Check analysed the image using the Google SynthID detection tool, which identifies photos and videos generated by its AI models (archived link).
The tool detected that the image was made "with Google AI" with "Very High" confidence.
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Screenshot showing the image in the interface of the SynthID detection tool
AFP has fact-checked other misinformation about US politics here.
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