Israeli barrier in the Damascus countryside.. What is the truth of the circulating image?

Accounts and pages on social media sites circulated a picture of a military barrier next to an Israeli flag, and a sign that sparked controversy.

The circulating image shows Israeli soldiers under a large sign, written on it "Sleep soundly, O Muawiyah. For Damascus is ours until the Day of Judgment", with the Syrian flag, the phrase Youth of Construction and Renewal, and the word Damascus.

Circulators of the image claimed that it is of a military barrier recently established by the Israeli army in a village in the Damascus countryside, at a point where supporters of the Syrian government hung the aforementioned sign.

Old composite images

Upon verifying the circulating image, the website for combating fake news and information "Masbar" found that the claim is false, and that the image is composite.

According to the site, the original image dates back to 2022, and shows an Israeli barrier on the Jordanian border, specifically at the crossing point on the Israeli-Jordanian border in Wadi Araba, and was taken on April 30, 2020.

The site also added that the Jordanian flag can be observed in both the original and circulating images.

The site indicated that the original image was modified by adding visual elements, including the sign written on it: "Sleep soundly, O Muawiyah, for Damascus is ours until the Day of Judgment".

After "Masbar" conducted a reverse search for the sign appearing in the circulating image, it reached similar images published on social media sites with differences in the scene's background.

The original advertising sign shows the name "Noor Al-Salam Bakery" accompanied by the phone number 71615831, which after searching and verifying, turned out to be located in the Manara area in Lebanon.

A furniture transport vehicle also appeared, written on it "Furnishings for Brazil", and upon searching for the product name, it turned out to be a company existing in Lebanon.

The circulation of the alleged image comes as the Israeli occupation army continues to carry out repeated incursions in southern Syria since the fall of the Assad regime on December 8 last year.