We’ve spotted old and AI-generated videos circulating online in the aftermath of two consecutive attacks on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on 10 and 11 October.
The Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel group in Yemen, have claimed responsibility for the attacks, which have killed at least 14 people, and injured hundreds more.
AI-generated clip
Although plenty of [WARNING: distressing content] real footage exists, at least one clip being associated with the attack is old and fake. It shows people running before an explosion and has been circulating online since at least March 2026. Fact checkers at AFP previously pointed out visual inconsistencies which show it is AI-generated, such as a hand holding a smartphone suddenly appearing next to a man’s head around 10 seconds in. It also flags in Meta’s AI detection tool.
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Video compilations mix AI clip with real footage
One Instagram post also claiming to show footage of the Riyadh attacks combines part of this AI-generated clip with real footage from Dubai International Airport from February 2026, after an Iranian missile attack.
Another video shared on Instagram and Facebook is made up of three separate clips. The first four seconds are taken from the AI-generated clip described above. This is followed by seven seconds of genuine footage showing dust and debris in a passenger terminal in the aftermath of the 10 October attack on Riyadh airport. The video ends with the real but miscaptioned footage of Dubai International Airport from February 2026, which is unrelated to the Riyadh attacks.
It can be difficult to tell what is real and what is not in the immediate aftermath of incidents like this, when genuine footage often circulates side by side with old and fabricated content. Our toolkit can help you check if a clip is authentic or taken out of context before sharing.
