A Filipino Facebook user shared a video of collapsing buildings, claiming they were hit in an attack by Iran. This is false.
The footage is from a demolition in China and is not related to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Posted on June 20, the video showed four structures being taken down, with an overlaid text that read:
“4:00am Iran Hit Big Buildings, 17 June 2025”
A reverse image search revealed that the footage was originally posted on May 28, 2018 by YouTube channel ChinaSpotlight. The clip carried a title in a mix of English and Chinese that partly says, “Highly Explosive! 4 Skyscrapers Demolished in China 15 Seconds”
According to the video description, the buildings, located in the port of Yanta in Shandong Province, had been vacant for 10 years at the time and were demolished on May 26, 2018. It further stated that a new hotel will be built on the site.
In an article, the online news site Telegrafi reported that the abandoned buildings were originally envisioned as a presidential complex. However, it remained unoccupied since 2009 after the developers failed to complete the project.
In a report published on May 27, 2018, the South China Morning Post explained that the project was halted after its South Korean investors withdrew due to the global financial crisis. A mainland developer later took over the project, but it remained unfinished due to safety concerns about its proximity to the sea.
The false video began circulating among Filipino netizens amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, after Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear and military facilities on June 13.
As of writing, the reel, posted by Facebook user Ruel Badana Pacanut (created June 3, 2024), has garnered 764,000 views, 6,600 reactions, 362 shares and 226 comments.
