Video of shivering child is from Syria, not Gaza

A video circulating online is being shared with the suggestion it was filmed in Gaza, but it appears to actually come from Syria. 

The video shows a young child with her hands in her pockets, who seems to be shivering, as she speaks to a man behind the camera. English subtitles overlaid on the footage suggest she is asked why she’s standing outside in the cold and she replies that it’s cold inside. Full Fact has not verified these subtitles. 

Posts on both Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) have shared the clip alongside a Palestinian flag, and several posts say: “I’m coming close to giving up on humanity”. One post includes the hashtag “#freepalestine”.

But this video appears to actually come from Syria and show a Syrian child at a refugee camp there. 

The earliest example of the video Full Fact could find was shared on 31 January with the caption: “Everything is beautiful in winter except for the displaced #Syrianchildren shivering from the bitter cold in refugee camps.” This post does not include subtitles. 

The account that shared the clip is described as a “field relief activist from inside the camps for the displaced in northern Syria”. 

It posted a separate photo and video of the same child on 22 February saying: “We visited [the child] for the second time and provided her with a warm bed, blankets, food, toys, chocolates, milk and heating materials”. 

The account holder told Full Fact that the girl “is in Syria in the camps” and said he had “visited her several times”. 

Miscaptioned images and videos are a common form of misinformation Full Fact finds online. We’ve written about many posts falsely claiming to show certain places, times, and people that they don’t. 

You can read more of our work countering misinformation on Israel and Gaza, as well as our guide to fact checking misleading videos relating to the conflict. 

Image courtesy of JRC, European Commission