Is a video showing helicopters being taken down by rapid missile fire actually footage of the Israeli defense system at work? No, that's not true: The video is taken from the video game ARMA 3, a tactical shooter video game developed by Bohemia Interactive.
The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) on May 23, 2021. The caption read:
OMG!!!Israel's defense system
This is what the post looked like on Facebook on May 24, 2021:
(Source: Facebook screenshot taken on Mon May 24 15:51:11 2021 UTC)
In an email to Lead Stories on May 24, 2021, Pavel Křižka, the public relations manager for Bohemia Interactive, confirmed that the footage in the Facebook video was from the company's video game:
yes, the footage is taken from our (moded) game Arma 3.
In gaming culture, "modding" a video game or software means to alter it to a player's liking. Other players can install modded versions of games through platforms such as Steam.
While it can protect against a variety of aerial threats, Iron Dome, Israel's air defense system since 2011, is best known for detecting and shooting down rockets, mortar and artillery.
Lead Stories previously debunked a similar claim that footage from ARMA 3 was footage of Israeli defense forces firing artillery.
