BOOM found that the video is from before June 13, when the recent military conflict began after Israel’s strike on Iran.
A compilation of two videos showing a large group of people walking in a procession is circulating with a false claim that it shows Israelis fleeing Tel Aviv in fear of an attack from Iran.
BOOM found that the visuals are from a religious procession in Russia.
Iran and Israel are now engaged in a military conflict, intensifying geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. The confrontation began on June 13, 2025, with Israel launching Operation Rising Lion against Iran, citing concerns over nuclear activities. The situation escalated further with multiple missile attacks by Iran on Israel. US President Donald Trump has issued a warning to Iran, demanding unconditional surrender — an ultimatum Iran has refused.
The Claim
Several social media users posted the video with the caption, “A new exodus? People are leaving Tel Aviv in droves. News reports confirm evacuations due to Israel-Iran escalations, with strikes on Tel Aviv around June 13-19. While the Gazan are still in Gaza, they’re not fleeing anywhere.” Click here to view the post and here for an archive.
1. X Post from June 6, 2025: We extracted keyframes from the video and performed a reverse image search, which led us to a post featuring the same footage. The post in Russian claimed that the video shows 22,000 orthodox Russians participating in the Velikoretsky religious procession, walking in honor of Christ, the Virgin Mary, and Saint Nicholas.
2. Participants Carried Flags and Holy Cross: In the videos, participants were seen carrying red flags along with a Holy Cross. We compared these visuals with photos from press releases issued by the Vyatka Diocese in June 2025 about the Velikoretsky religious procession in Russia and found matching flags and crosses in the event.
3. News Reports on the Velikoretsky Procession: We found a post by the European Pressphoto Agency (EPA Images) reporting on the Velikoretsky Cross procession near Monastyrskoe village, Russia, on June 5, 2025, along with photographs of the event. The post stated that the Velikoretsky procession, held annually from June 3 to 8 since the early 15th century in honour of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, covers a distance of 150 kilometers over six days.
