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On March 1, 2025, Israel banned the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. More than two and a half months later, its armed forces and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced an operation to occupy the entire territory, while allowing five United Nations trucks carrying food and other aid to enter, the first such convoy since the blockade began.
In this context, several misleading videos and false contents have circulated, recorded in other countries or under different circumstances, being shared as if they showed Chinese aircraft dropping humanitarian aid over Gaza. These posts support a narrative portraying China as defying Israel’s blockade and confronting the United States, claiming it will be the country that “prevents Palestine from starving.”
As of May 20, 2025, there is no record, neither in the media nor in official government channels, of China conducting air drops of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
No, this video is not of a Chinese airdrop to Gaza: it's a 2024 operation by the United Arab Emirates
"Defying the United States and Israel." With messages like this, a video is circulating showing aid packages being dropped from several planes. The content claims that this is a Chinese operation. However, it is a hoax.
A reverse image search of several frames from the video reveals that the planes belong to the United Arab Emirates; the UAE flag is printed on the aid packages. A journalist from the country, Mohammed Taqi, posted it on March 30, 2024 (over a year ago) on his Instagram account with the caption: “Look at the Emirati Falcons in the skies over Gaza.”
These aircrafts were part of an operation called “Birds of Goodwill” to deliver aid to Palestine. Anadolu Agency published several articles on the subject, one of which dates to March 28, 2024, matching the Instagram post by Mohammed Taqi.
No, this video is not of Chinese planes delivering aid to Gaza: it’s a Chinese-Egyptian military exercise near the pyramids of Giza
“China defies warnings and brings hope to Gaza.” Another video circulates showing aircraft allegedly delivering Chinese humanitarian aid to Gaza. In this case, the planes do belong to the Chinese military, but the location is the pyramids of Giza in Egypt.
It is the “Eagles of Civilization 2025” operation, a joint military exercise between both countries conducted in May 2025. Among the images released by news agencies and the Chinese Armed Forces are scenes of aircraft flying over the pyramids of Giza, footage that is included in the video now being circulated as if it showed Palestine.
No, this video does not show a Chinese spokesperson saying that his country's planes will fly over Gaza; it is about the trade war started by the United States
Accompanied by messages such as “China will not allow Palestine to go hungry,” users are sharing a video showing Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian speaking. The video and the audio are real, but since it’s in Chinese, false Spanish subtitles have been added claiming: “China will fly over Palestinian airspace, controlled by Israel. Any attack on Chinese aircraft will be considered a declaration of war.”
This, however, is a hoax. The video is from April 8, 2025, and in it, Jian is actually speaking about China’s response to tariffs imposed by the United States on the rest of the world. In a post by the British broadcaster Channel 4 dated the same day, using the exact same video angle, the English subtitles accurately state that the spokesperson said: “The Chinese people do not stir up trouble, nor are they afraid of it. Pressure, threats, and blackmail are not the way to negotiate with China. China will definitely take the necessary steps to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.”
