Unpacking rumor Iranian state TV said, 'Tonight, a great surprise will occur, one that the world will remember for centuries'
A rumor that circulated online in mid-June 2025 claimed Iranian state TV announced, "Tonight, a great surprise will occur, one that the world will remember for centuries."
For example, on June 17, an X user posted (archived), "BREAKING: Iranian State TV has said: 'Tonight, a great surprise will occur, one that the world will remember for centuries.'" The post received 12.4 million views, as of this writing.
(@unusual_whales/X)
Numerous other users also shared this claim, including on Bluesky (archived), Facebook (archived), Instagram (archived), Reddit (archived), TikTok (archived), X (archived) and YouTube (archived). Newsweek, The Gateway Pundit and the Arabic-language website Asharq News (archived), as well as the British tabloids The Daily Mail and The Mirror, reported this news as fact as well.
However, searches of the wire services Agence France-Presse, The Associated Press and Reuters found no reports about this matter. Had Iranian state TV made such an announcement, news media outlets worldwide would have reported it as major breaking news. Very few outlets reported the alleged quote, and those that did provided no video or other evidence to support their claims.
This rumor possibly originated from an X post appearing on the account Tehran Updates (@TehranDefence) in the U.S. morning hours of June 17. The account displays a bio reading: "Live War updates / This account is not affiliated with any Government entity." According to a search of X, the post featured the earliest record of the text, "Tonight there will be a big surprise and the world will remember it for centuries."
The existence of this X post indicated the rumor Iranian state TV made the announcement was likely false. However, Snopes did not attach a fact-check rating to this story because we have not definitively established the truth about this matter.
(@TehranDefence/X)
Snopes contacted Iran's ministry of foreign affairs by email to ask whether Iranian state TV made the alleged announcement, and will update this story if we learn more information.
Users shared this matter amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, with Iran and Israel attacking each other with missile strikes. On June 18, the AP reported Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rejected U.S. calls for surrender, and warned any U.S. military involvement would cause "irreparable damage" to them.
The AP also said an Israeli airstrike hit an Iranian state TV studio during a live broadcast. The reporting features a video of the moment of impact.
For further reading on the subject of state TV broadcasts, another fact check examined the true claim that Russian state TV aired n*de photos of U.S. first lady Melania Trump shortly after the 2024 election.
Barnes, Julian E., et al. "Iran Is Preparing Missiles for Possible Retaliatory Strikes on U.S. Bases, Officials Say." The New York Times, 17 June 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/17/us/politics/iran-israel-us-bases.html.
Gambrell, Jon, et al. "Israel Strikes Iran's Nuclear Sites and Kills Top Generals. Iran Retaliates with Missile Barrages." The Associated Press, 13 June 2025, https://apnews.com/article/iran-explosions-israel-tehran-00234a06e5128a8aceb406b140297299.
"Israeli Strike on Iranian State TV Fills Studio with Dust and Debris during Live Broadcast." The Associated Press, 16 June 2025, https://apnews.com/article/iran-israel-irib-state-tv-air-strike-9ab46d05baeb354a6596bd09aa12a2d6.
"Live Updates: Iranian Leader Warns US That Intervening Would Cause 'Irreparable Damage.'" The Associated Press, 18 June 2025, https://apnews.com/live/israel-iran-attack-conflict-updates.
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