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Claim: A Facebook page, Nigerian Armed Forces & Military News, claimed that a video showed the United States Armed Forces attacking the Islamic State’s West African Provinces (ISWAP).
Verdict: FALSE. Keyframes from the video revealed that it was from a multinational military training carried out in Indonesia from Aug. 31 to Sept. 13, 2023. Also, the aircraft in the video is an AH-64 Apache helicopter, not a Black Hawk as claimed.
Full Text
Nigeria has been in the news following claims of a ‘Christian Genocide’ saga, which caused the United States government to declare Nigeria a ‘Country of Particular Concern.’ Among the threats issued by Donald Trump, America’s president, military invasion garnered much attention in international discussions, causing regional blocs to advocate for diplomacy between the two countries.
Amidst this, the Facebook page Nigerian Armed Forces & Military News shared a 20-second video showing military aircraft conducting an aerial operation. The poster claimed that the helicopter was Black Hawk, and it was an attack by the United States military against the Islamic States West African Provinces (ISWAP) near Lake Chad. ISWAP is a terrorist group in the Chad Basin.
As of Dec. 17, 2025, it has garnered over 10,200 reactions, 370 comments, and 510 reshares.
An X user who tweeted the same video on Dec. 14, 2025, garnered over 7,400 reactions and 556 comments from over 1.8 million views within the period. We observed that over 1,900 X users bookmarked the post, while more than 1,400 viewers retweeted it.
The comment section revealed that followers expressed differing opinions, including disbelief.
Oyon Chineme said, “I can only believe it’s just because of the page reporting this news. I hardly turn on social media news.”
Mohammed Murtala said, “Nice work, good job. May Allah bless the Nigerian Army and protect them.”
Solomon Olofu said, “That plane is called Apache, and it’s owned by the USA Army/Air Force.”
Divine Nwaeze said, “This is a military drill for the Air Force, not the USA military. Besides, the USA military uses Black Hawk or Apache helicopters.”
Moses Tamara-Ekpezude said, “I could not see any terrorists; they are shooting, I think they are just wasting the bullets in their possession.”
The conflicting thoughts and the claim’s implication amidst the country’s current security challenges prompted DUBAWA to fact-check the claim.
Verification
The video showed that the operation was carried out in a lush, green, and mountainous terrain. When we conducted a reverse image search on a keyframe from the video, we discovered that the viral video was a merged form of two different videos.
We traced the video in parts to a YouTube video from Associated Press (AP) on Sept. 16, 2023. The two-minute 59-second video was titled “Soldiers from Indonesia, US, Australia, and other nations take part in exercises in Java.”
In the video’s summary, DUBAWA discovered that the aircraft was not a Black Hawk helicopter as claimed. Instead, manual analyses revealed that the combat aircraft was a Boeing AH-64 Apache.
Further findings revealed that the military exercise, also called the Super Garuda Shield drill, was a multinational event held in East Java, Indonesia, from Aug. 31 to Sept. 13, 2023. Approximately 5,000 personnel from nations including Indonesia, the United States, and Australia participated.
The exercise featured a Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise (CALFEX), showcasing heavy hardware such as M1A1 Abrams tanks and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, as seen in the video. The features of the Boeing AH-64 Apache aircraft differed from those of the Black Hawk mentioned in the claim.
In the footage, we observed the AH-64 Apache hovering in a static, exposed position while engaging targets. In a real-world “hot” zone like the Chad Basin, where ISWAP operates, this would be catastrophic.
In military aviation, combat pilots operating in hostile territory adhere to the principle of “Manoeuvre is Life.” To avoid being shot down by Man-Portable Air-Defence Systems (MANPADS) or Rocket-Propelled Grenades (RPGs), pilots attack while moving at high speeds. Hovering in open space makes the aircraft’s heat signature and silhouette an easy lock-on for ground-based insurgents.
Furthermore, the AH-64 Apache is designed to hide behind terrain and only pop up for seconds to fire before disappearing. The relaxed, static hovering seen in the video is a standard procedure for Live Fire Exercises (LFX).
The environment is cold (no return fire), with a focus on weapon calibration and crew certification. The presence of a stationary aircraft in such a lush, open landscape confirms this was a choreographed demonstration of firepower at Super Garuda Shield 2023, not an aerial strike in a conflict zone.
Conclusion
The footage was from a multinational military drill carried out in 2023 in Indonesia, not a real-time combat against the ISWAP terrorists in the Chad Basin. Also, the aircraft used is an AH-64 Apache, not a Black Hawk, as stated in the claim. Therefore, the claim is false.
