No, This Image Does Not Show Israeli Billionaire’s Ship Burning in Indian Ocean

The image could be traced back to at least 2019 and shows an oil tanker on fire in the sea of Oman.

Fact-Check | The image of a cargo ship on fire is old and is being falsely shared as recent.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

An image showing a ship on fire is going viral on the internet as a recent incident from the Indian Ocean.

What have users said?: An X (formerly Twitter) premium user shared the image with a caption that said, "An ISRAELI BILLIONAIRE'S cargo ship was just hit by a drone in the Indian Ocean."

You can view an archive of the post here.

(Source: X/Screenshot)

The post had gained around 2.8 million views on the platform when the report was being written.

(More archives of similar claims can be seen here, here, and here.)

What is the truth?: While there are news reports about a drone hitting a contained ship managed by an Israeli-controlled company in the Indian Ocean, the image in the viral claim could be traced back to at least 2019.

• It reportedly shows an oil tanker on fire in the sea of Oman.

What led us to the truth?: We performed a simple reverse image search and came across the same image uploaded on a report published by The Guardian.

• It was published in 2019 and was titled, "Oil tanker attacks will inflame conflict between the US, its allies and Iran."

• The report said that the attack on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman has caused jitters in the global markets.

The report was published on 13 June 2019.

(Source: The Guardian/Screenshot)

Further, we found a report on NBC News that carried the same image as the viral one. The report was titled "Oil prices spike by 4 percent after Gulf tanker attacks" and was published in June 2019.

• The image was uploaded with a caption that said, "Smoke billows from an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman on June 13, 2019."

The report was published on 13 June 2019.

(Source: NBC News/Screenshot)

Other sources: Another reverse image search led us to the image uploaded on stock website, Alamy. Its caption mentioned that an oil tanker was on fire in the sea of Oman on 13 June 2019.

• It further said, "Two oil tankers near the strategic Strait of Hormuz were reportedly attacked on Thursday, an assault that left one ablaze and adrift as sailors were evacuated from both vessels and the U.S. Navy rushed to assist amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran."

The image was created on 13 June 2019.

(Source: Alamy/Screenshot)

The context of the claim: According to a report published by Reuters, a container ship managed by an Israeli-controlled company was struck by an alleged Iranian drone in the Indian Ocean.

• A United States defence official said that the attack caused minor damage to the vessel but no injuries were reported.

Conclusion: It is clear that the image is old and is being falsely shared as a recent visual from the Indian Ocean.

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