A widely shared video purporting to show an Indonesian oil tanker being granted safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz has been confirmed as AI‑generated, even as Jakarta continues talks with Tehran to secure passage for two of its vessels that remain trapped in the Arabian Gulf. The footage, first posted on Instagram on March 11, circulated across social platforms and prompted celebratory comments before fact‑checkers flagged it as fabricated.
The clip opens with a man in a hard hat and orange vest speaking in Indonesian aboard a tanker, saying the crew must request permission to pass and that radios are in use. It then cuts to a man in camouflage with an Iranian flag behind him speaking in English: “OK. Thank you so much. Indonesia always we… present through here.” The post, shared on Instagram and TikTok, drew responses thanking Iran and praising Indonesia for being “prioritised” during the crisis.
Closer inspection and automated analysis identified multiple signs the footage was synthetic. TikTok labeled the video as containing AI-generated content, and the Hive Moderation tool returned a 99.6 percent probability that the clip had been artificially produced. AFP investigators pointed to visual anomalies common in deepfakes: warped railings on the ship, disfigured people on a second vessel, a shoulder patch resembling a U.S. flag on the supposed Iranian officer, an illegible name tag, a walkie‑talkie missing an antenna, and an apparently unattached Iranian flag in the background.
The disinformation emerged against an ongoing diplomatic effort by Jakarta to secure safe transit for two Pertamina‑owned tankers, Pertamina Pride and Gamsunoro. Indonesia’s foreign ministry said on March 27 it had received a “positive response” from Tehran to the request, but as of April 2 there were no official reports the vessels had passed the strait. Vega Pita, acting corporate secretary of Pertamina International Shipping, told AFP on April 1 that both ships remain in the Arabian Gulf and “still cannot get past the Strait of Hormuz.”
The strait has been effectively closed by Iran since it was hit by U.S. and Israeli strikes in February, a rupture that has escalated into a wider regional conflict and severe disruption to maritime traffic. The International Maritime Organization has estimated roughly 20,000 seafarers are stranded aboard about 3,200 vessels west of the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring the humanitarian and commercial toll of the shutdown and the incentive for states to seek exemptions or special transit arrangements.
The incident highlights how rapidly synthetic media can shape perceptions during high‑stakes diplomatic moments. AFP has previously debunked other false items related to the Middle East fighting, and authorities and platforms continue to monitor and label manipulated content as negotiations over ship movements and wider efforts to reopen vital shipping lanes proceed.