Israeli embassy shares, quickly deletes video of hypothetical Hamas attack on Seoul

The Israeli embassy in Seoul has deleted a video it had shared depicting a hypothetical Hamas attack on South Korea after criticism from the host government, South Korean media outlets say.

The video was uploaded Tuesday and depicts a terror attack on Seoul, the country’s capital.

According to reports, the since-deleted footage featured gunshots, explosions, and graphic imagery of a wounded mother searching for her daughter.

The footage was also shared by the official Israel account on X, formerly Twitter, in a post that has since been deleted.

The video was deleted less than a day later, reports say, amid heavy criticism online.

“Hamas’ killing and kidnapping of Israeli civilians cannot be justified, but it is not considered appropriate for the Israeli Embassy in Korea to produce and distribute a video comparing this to the security situation of another country,” local media reports Seoul’s foreign ministry as saying.

“We conveyed our position to the Israeli Embassy in Korea, and the Israeli side deleted the video,” the statement adds.

South Korea’s army recently held drills meant to prepare for a Hamas-style attack from the north after becoming alarmed by the October 7 massacres.

South Korea held rare military defense drills that simulated an attack by North Korea on Seoul — replicating some of the tactics that Hamas used against Israel on October 7. pic.twitter.com/bQtMx60VK9

— DW News (@dwnews) December 27, 2023