Viral posts falsely claim Hamas is using dolls to stage infant deaths

The claim that Palestinian authorities are using baby dolls to stage child deaths and exaggerate the horrors of the Israel-Hamas war picked up traction online in December 2023. But this false narrative is based on falsehoods and out-of-context images. Let’s look at the facts.

Quick Look

No
This video is not evidence that Hamas is staging the deaths of Palestinian infants using realistic-looking baby dolls.
Yes
These dolls are “reborn” rubber dolls made to resemble real infants and this footage of them predates the Israel-Hamas war.
Yes
Thousands of children have been killed during the Israel-Hamas war, including numerous infants.
Yes
False claims about atrocities being staged, either with “crisis actors” or toy props, are common during war and conflicts.

The Takeaway

Minimizing the atrocities of war — and other incomprehensible mass casualty events — by claiming that they are staged or faked is a common tactic of propagandists and denialists. As these claims get repeated in new iterations of viral posts, they can start to feel true, which can make people more likely to accept these false assertions as they see more of them. This is an example of the “illusory truth effect.”

This Instagram video comes on the heels of several similar (and false) rumors that Hamas was using dolls to lie about infant deaths. Remember, always double-check the evidence when encountering a sensational claim on social media. In this case, the video provides visual evidence that rubber dolls exist, but offers no proof the dolls were being used to stage infant deaths.

The 5 Factors

We’ve determined that this viral rumor is misleading or false based on its failure to pass the following credibility factors. Please note that these factors do not represent degrees of falsehood. A post that fails a single factor is generally just as false as a post that fails all five.

Snapshot

Source
Evidence
Context
Authenticity
Reasoning

Source

Has it been posted or confirmed by a credible source?

No.

The claim about the use of baby dolls is being pushed by accounts with a clear pro-Israel agenda.

Evidence

Is there evidence that proves the claim?

No.

No, there is no evidence that these dolls were used by Hamas to fake deaths.

Context

Is the context accurate?

No.

No, this video was originally shared in January 2023, months before the Israel-Hamas war began, as an example of a hyper-realistic doll. It was removed from that context in December 2023 and shared as if it were related to the war .

Authenticity