What was claimed
A photo shows a ship with a US flag on fire after it was targeted in the Gulf of Aden.
Our verdict
This isn’t what the image shows. It is actually of an Iranian navy vessel which caught fire and sank in the Gulf of Oman in 2021.
Photo supposedly showing US-flagged ship targeted in Gulf of Aden is of Iranian vessel in 2021
11 July 2024
An image which some on social media have claimed shows a US-flagged ship on fire after being targeted in the Gulf of Aden is actually of an Iranian naval vessel sinking in 2021.
The picture has been shared on X (formerly Twitter), and also Facebook, with the caption: “Reports of a ship with a US flag targeted in the gulf of Aden. [sic]”
It has been reported that a United States-flagged container ship, identified as the Maersk Sentosa, was targeted by Houthi rebels from Yemen in the Gulf of Aden on Tuesday (9 July).
The shipping firm Maersk reportedly told Reuters there had been no injuries to crew or damage to the ship or cargo. The recent incident is the latest in a string of attacks on shipping vessels travelling in the region since November 2023.
However, the image that is being shared does not show the Maersk Sentosa or a recent incident.
It is actually of an Iranian navy ship, the Khark, which caught fire and sank in the Gulf of Oman—which lies between Oman and Iran—in June 2021.
A reverse image search of the image being shared brings up news reports of the 2021 incident, containing the same photo.
Full Fact has fact checked a number of images and videos which have been falsely claimed to show attacks on ships in the region since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza conflict in October 2023.
If you’ve seen a social media post and are wondering whether it’s real, see our guides to how to spot misleading videos and how to spot misleading images online for full help.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as false because the image is not of a US-flagged ship which has been recently attacked, but of an Iranian naval vessel which sank in 2021.