TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A post from the account X [archive] and Instagram claimed that an Israeli nuclear power plant was destroyed by an Iranian attack on March 2, 2026. The video shows thick white smoke billowing upwards, accompanied by the sound of explosions and flames in the distance. The clamor of residents witnessing the incident can also be heard.
So, is this video really showing a destroyed Israeli nuclear facility?
FACT CHECK
Tempo verified the content through a reverse image search and comparison with authoritative media reports. The results showed that the explosion did not occur at an Israeli nuclear facility, but rather at a weapons depot in Ukraine.
The footage is identical to a video uploaded by several Russian-language YouTube accounts in March 2017, including Ivan Shabrat, Arcorize, and Buzzilla. According to Task & Purpose, the amateur video captured the dramatic explosion of a military ammunition depot in Balakliya, eastern Ukraine, on March 23, 2017.
Several international media outlets, including the BBC, Al Jazeera, DW, and the Ukrainian television channel One Plus One TV, also broadcast the incident. The explosion at the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense artillery depot injured two people, according to the National Police in Kharkiv.
The Al Jazeera report stated that Ukrainian authorities accused Russian-backed separatists of being behind the incident. The BBC noted that the weapons depot is located only 100 kilometers from territory controlled by pro-Russian separatists who have been fighting the Ukrainian government since 2014. The destroyed ammunition was intended to support the Ukrainian military in the conflict.
Natanz Targeted by Attack
There has been no independent confirmation of Iran's claim of an attack on Israel's nuclear facilities. Conversely, Reuters reported that Iran's nuclear facility in Natanz was targeted by a US and Israeli military operation on Monday, March 2, 2026. This was revealed by Iran's Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Reza Najafi.
"Again they attacked Iran's peaceful, safeguarded nuclear facilities yesterday," Reza Najafi told reporters at a meeting of the 35-nation IAEA Board of Governors.
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon emphasized that the joint operation with the United States will not stop until Tehran's nuclear capabilities are crippled. Israel is committed to doing everything possible to ensure Iran does not acquire weapons of mass destruction.
"One of the goals of this joint operation is to make sure that they don't have nuclear capabilities to threaten the entire world... We will do whatever is necessary to make sure they don't have nuclear capability," Danny Danon said in New York on Monday, March 2, 2026.
CONCLUSION
Tempo's verification concluded that the claim that Israel's nuclear facilities were destroyed is false.
TEMPO FACT-CHECK TEAM
**Do you have information or claims that you want to have fact-checked? Contact our ChatBot. You can also send criticism, objections, or feedback for this Fact-Checking article via email to [email protected].
Fact Check: Kim Jong Un Did Not Pledge to Help Iran Fight the US and Israel
1 hari lalu
Tempo Fact Check Team found that the circulating video of Kim Jong Un's speech originated from a 2022 military parade.
Fact Check: Video Does Not Show Putin at Khamenei's Funeral
1 hari lalu
Tempo Fact Check Team found that a video circulating online shows Putin visiting the graves of victims of the Siege of Leningrad in Saint Petersburg.
Fact Check: Benjamin Netanyahu Did Not Die in Iran Attack on March 3, 2026
2 hari lalu
Tempo Fact Check Team found that circulating videos and images are AI-generated.
Fact Check: No Israeli General Barring Indonesia from Meddling in Iran Conflict
3 hari lalu
Fact check - There's no mention of Jacoob Ariel Ashaabi in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) structures.
Fact Check: Photos of Khamenei's Death Flagged as AI-Generated
4 hari lalu
Tempo's fact check team finds that images claiming to show Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's body after the US-Israeli attack are AI-generated.
Fact Check: Claim That HPV Vaccine Endangers Children is False
6 hari lalu
Fact check - The HPV vaccine is intended to protect children from cancer, not to endanger their lives.
Fact Check: Cancer Cure Not Linked to US-WHO Exit
6 hari lalu
Fact check - There is no link between the discovery of cancer treatments and vaccines and the US leaving the WHO.
Fact Check: BMKG Never Announced a 2026 Megathrust Earthquake Across Indonesia
7 hari lalu
Tempo Fact Check Team found that the BMKG never issued a warning of a major earthquake in Indonesia in 2026.
Fact Check: Epstein Files Do Not Show Leonardo DiCaprio Practiced 'Cannibal Diet'
8 hari lalu
Tempo Fact Check team found that there is no record of Leonardo DiCaprio's cannibal diet in the Epstein files.
Fact Check: Was Donald Trump's Speech Disrupted by 'Takbir' Chants?
10 hari lalu
Tempo fact check team found that Trump's video has been altered to not match the actual event.
