Disinformation Surges Amid Gaza Ceasefire

As hostages return from Gaza after 738 days in captivity, social media has become flooded with false and misleading claims about the ceasefire and freed captives, further polarizing public sentiment. The DW Fact check team has investigated several viral examples that have gained significant traction online.

One widespread claim by far-right activist Laura Loomer stated that “All of the female hostages are dead,” a post that gained substantial attention following the October 13, 2025 release of Israeli hostages. This statement is demonstrably false.

The facts tell a different story. While the most recent release did involve an all-male group of 20 hostages, numerous female captives had already been freed in previous exchanges. During the November 2023 ceasefire, multiple women and children were released from Hamas captivity. Later, on January 19, 2025, three women – Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari – were among 33 hostages freed. Just days later, on January 25, four female Israeli soldiers – Karina Ariev, Liri Albag, Daniella Gilboa and Naama Levy – were also released.

According to the Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry, of the original 251 hostages taken during Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack, 117 have been released, including many women and children. The Israeli Defense Forces has confirmed that no more living Israeli hostages remain in Hamas captivity, though the bodies of at least 27 hostages who died in captivity are still being held.

Another misleading claim involves footage purportedly showing Hamas fighters celebrating the current ceasefire in Gaza. The viral post, which garnered over 2.5 million views, shows uniformed Hamas members in vehicles with the caption: “Hamas is the only army in the world that wears civilian clothes during war and puts on uniforms during ceasefires.”

However, reverse image searches reveal this footage is not current. The 17-second video was actually posted on January 26, 2025, and shows celebrations for a previous peace deal that was in effect from January 19 to March 18, 2025. This misleading context has been replicated across multiple platforms and languages, including Spanish, Persian, Polish, and Russian.

Similarly deceptive is a video showing a luxury BMW M4 driving through rubble-filled streets, posted with the caption: “Nothing like rolling out in your brand new $170,000 BMW M4 to celebrate the end of the ‘Gaza Genocide’ that never existed.” DW’s investigation traced this video back to at least May 2025, months before the current ceasefire.

The post also inflates the vehicle’s value – the 2025 base model BMW M4 starts at approximately $80,875, significantly less than the claimed $170,000. Furthermore, the post’s dismissal of genocide allegations contradicts assessments from UN commissions, Israeli NGOs, and the International Association of Genocide Scholars, who have characterized the scale of killings in Gaza as genocide.

Perhaps most disturbing is a viral post claiming to show evidence that Israeli forces planted “booby-trapped children’s toys” in Gaza. The post, which received 3.5 million views, features images of a purple Teletubby stuffed animal rigged with explosives.

These images actually come from a July 2018 video created by Project Masam, a Saudi-funded humanitarian organization working to clear landmines in Yemen, one of the world’s most heavily mine-contaminated countries. While multiple Arab media outlets did report that a Gaza civil defense spokesperson made claims about booby-trapped children’s toys, DW’s fact-checkers found no evidence supporting this allegation.

These examples highlight how misinformation continues to spread during critical moments in the Israel-Hamas conflict, with old footage, misleading contexts, and outright fabrications being weaponized to shape public perception of events on the ground. As hostages return home and ceasefire negotiations continue, distinguishing fact from fiction remains vital to understanding the complex reality of the situation.