Ex-Iranian president did not die in latest Iran-Israel war
"Breaking news! Helicopter crash / According to the report, the plane carrying Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi exploded (June 24)," partly reads the Tagalog-language caption of a Facebook post shared on June 25.
It displays an image that appears to be from a TV report, with screenshots of comments plastered all over it. The Tagalog-language chyron says, "Foreign leaders offered their condolences after the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi."
The posts circulated after Iran retaliated against Israel's major bombardment campaign on June 13 targeting Iranian nuclear and military sites and killing top officials (archived link).
Residential areas have also been hit in the fighting, with the health ministry in Tehran reporting at least 627 civilians killed and 4,900 wounded (archived link).
Iran's retaliatory attacks on Israel have killed 28 people, according to official figures.
While Iran and Israel have been locked in a shadow war for decades, their 12-day conflict was by far the most destructive confrontation between them (archived link).
A US-proposed ceasefire between Israel and Iran appeared to be holding June 30 (archived link).
US President Donald Trump had accused both countries of violating the ceasefire he announced late June 23, but hours later he said that it was in effect.
Several other users re-shared the circulating TV report as recent, and comments on the post indicate some users were misled.
"Maybe this is just a show. Because Iran attacked last night," one user said.
Another wrote: "Haha smell something fishy. Why did he die? Because they lost to America".
But the widely shared image is from a news report in May 2024.
Keyword searches of the news chyron found that the Philippine broadcaster News5 uploaded the report on its verified TikTok page on May 21, 2024 (archived link).
The report originally aired on the May 20 newscast of News5's Frontline Pilipinas (archived link).
Its video caption said in Tagalog: "The president of Iran was killed in a helicopter crash. The Iranian foreign minister also died from the accident."
Visuals shared in the false post corresponded to the 1:06 mark of News5's video.
AFP reported the helicopter apparently made a "hard landing" in the Dizmar forest between the cities of Varzaqan and Jolfa in Iran's East Azerbaijan province, near its border with Azerbaijan, under circumstances that remain unclear (archived link).
Former health minister and long-time parliamentarian Masoud Pezeshkian replaced the late Raisi after winning the 2024 presidential polls (archived link).
The election was called early following the death of the ultraconservative president Raisi, and took place amid heightened regional tensions and domestic discontent (archived link).
AFP has debunked other false information on the Iran-Israel war here.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
24 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump Says ‘Mr Japan' Unfair on Cars, Floats Keeping 25% Tariff
(Bloomberg) -- US President Donald Trump floated the idea of keeping 25% tariffs on Japan's cars as talks between the two nations continued with little more than a week to go before a slew of higher duties are set to kick in if a trade deal isn't reached. Philadelphia Transit System Votes to Cut Service by 45%, Hike Fares Squeezed by Crowds, the Roads of Central Park Are Being Reimagined Sao Paulo Pushes Out Favela Residents, Drug Users to Revive Its City Center Sprawl Is Still Not the Answer Mapping the Architectural History of New York's Chinatown 'So we give Japan no cars. They won't take our cars, right? And yet we take millions and millions of their cars into the United States. It's not fair,' Trump said during a Fox News interview that aired Sunday. 'Now, we have oil. They could take a lot of oil. They could take a lot of other things,' he said, referring to ways Japan might reduce the US trade deficit. The comments show that the two sides still remain some distance from an agreement and highlight the risk that Trump may stick with the 25% tariff on autos. The interview came out after another round of talks between Tokyo's top trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Akazawa flew across the world to hold face-to-face talks in Washington, and while they initially met in person, two subsequent discussions took place on the phone. Akazawa couldn't meet US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this time even after he extended his visit by a day. Following the airing of Trump's interview, which was taped Friday, Akazawa took to social media to reiterate that the bilateral talks are ongoing. 'Japan-US negotiations are at a critical stage, and we will continue to engage in sincere and earnest discussions,' he said in a post on X. Both sides agreed to continue talks this week after the Trump interview took place on Friday, he added. Auto-related stocks on the Topix fell 1.1% in Tokyo on Monday, compared with a 0.4% gain in the overall index. The duty on the car sector has emerged as one of the key sticking points in the talks. Washington is focusing on its large deficit in the sector while Tokyo is trying to protect a key pillar of its economy. In 2024, Japan's trade surplus with the US stood at ¥8.6 trillion ($59.3 billion). Roughly 82% of the gap was due to Japan's surplus in cars and auto parts. US statistics show that the deficit with Japan is the seventh largest among Washington's individual trading partners. Akazawa has repeatedly said that the US's car tariffs are unacceptable, saying that Japan's auto industry has made an enormous contribution to the US economy through the investment of more than $60 billion and the creation of 2.3 million local jobs. Japan has insisted on keeping the sectoral tariffs on cars and other items included in the talks on the wider country-specific levies that are due to go up on July 9. Upon his return to Tokyo on Monday, Akazawa reiterated that stance while saying the deadline is a milestone in the talks. 'It's a huge blow to us that the auto sector remains subject to the 25% tariff,' Akazawa said. 'Taking this into account, we aim to continue vigorous discussions toward an overall agreement.' Statements released by the Japanese government over the weekend said Akazawa and Lutnick had 'fruitful' discussions and agreed to continue seeking a deal that is beneficial for both the US and Japan. The statements did not touch on what was discussed or what progress was made. The 25% US tariff is already in place on cars and auto parts, along with a 50% duty on steel and aluminum. The separate across-the-board tariffs, now at 10%, will jump to 24% if no deal is reached in time. Without a breakthrough in the negotiations, Japan's economy could be pushed into a technical recession after it shrank in the first quarter. Trump's statements in the interview gave no impression that Japan was any closer to reaching a deal or winning an extended reprieve on the reciprocal tariffs. Instead, Trump flagged that the US can set its trade terms with Japan unilaterally. 'I'm going to send letters,' Trump said in the interview, referring to a plan to inform some trading partners that the US will unilaterally set tariffs. 'I could send one to Japan. 'Dear Mr. Japan, here's the story. You're going to pay a 25% tariff on your cars.'' --With assistance from Yoshiaki Nohara, Yasufumi Saito, Mari Kiyohara and Akemi Terukina. (Updates with Akazawa's comments Monday.) America's Top Consumer-Sentiment Economist Is Worried How to Steal a House Inside Gap's Last-Ditch, Tariff-Addled Turnaround Push Apple Test-Drives Big-Screen Movie Strategy With F1 Does a Mamdani Victory and Bezos Blowback Mean Billionaires Beware? ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Washington Post
28 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Israeli settlers rampage at a military base in the West Bank
TEL AVIV, Israel — Dozens of Israeli settlers rampaged around a military base in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, setting fires, vandalizing military vehicles, spraying graffiti and attacking soldiers, the military said. Sunday night's unrest came after several attacks in the West Bank carried out by Jewish settlers and anger at their arrests by security forces attempting to contain the violence over the past few days.
Bloomberg
34 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Tariff Bullying Is Working Too Well in Europe
Donald Trump's April tariff barrage felt like the height of hubris. It infuriated allies, damaged his popularity at home and triggered financial-market chaos so acute the whole thing was paused within days — the latest sign of America's Icarus-like tendency to try to remake the world every few decades. Yet three months on, as the deadline for a compromise looms, Europe's own syndrome risks emerging: a tendency to look more like a collection of Asterix villages than a cohesive whole. It's now looking increasingly likely that the European Union's 27 members, whose common trade policy is led by Brussels, will be faced with what is called an 'asymmetric' deal. There will be no removal of all tariffs imposed or threatened by Trump, including a baseline levy expected at 10%. If that's the case, the UK's bare-bones deal — which failed to cancel its own 10% tariff or a 25% levy on steel and aluminum — has become a kind of precedent: a few carve-outs, a gushing tweet and hope that Trump moves on. Canada has also become a precedent, withdrawing its digital services tax on tech companies after the US made it a red line for talks. Financial markets see cause for cheer as a de-escalation path takes form.
