Fact Check: Photo Of Irish Rockstars Bono & Bob Geldof Holding Israel Flag Is AI-Generated
An image of Irish musicians Bono and Bob Geldof holding the Israeli national flag has circulated online, claiming that they are endorsing ‘apartheid’.
- The Verdict: Fake The image, first shared by a satirical account, is fake and was likely created using Artificial Intelligence.
What is the claim?
An image of Irish musicians Bono and Bob Geldof holding the Israeli national flag has circulated online, claiming that they are endorsing “apartheid”. Bono is the lead vocalist of the rock band U2, and Geldof is the frontman of the Boomtown Rats.
An X user shared the image with the caption, “Make songs about fighting against apartheid... then openly support apartheid.” The post received around 9,000 likes and 2,200 retweets. Archived versions of similar posts can be found here and here.
The image gained traction after Irish singer Mary Coughlan criticised Bono and Geldof for not speaking out about the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. She remarked, “We all saved the world when Bob and Bono were talking about saving the world, and I couldn’t understand what was different about this situation in Gaza. Why would they be so quiet about it?” according to Dublin Live.
However, the image is fabricated. Our investigation reveals that it was created using Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Here are the facts
Through a reverse image search, we traced the origin of the image to an X account called Dr. Harold News (archived here), which first posted it on December 17, 2024. The caption shared with the image read, “BREAKING: Bono and Geldof stage two-man vigil outside Israeli Embassy in Dublin.”
On December 19, the user acknowledged the image was ‘fake’ (archived here). The account’s bio (archived here) clearly states, “Fake news and topical satire.” The linked Facebook page (archived here) also identifies itself as “Satire/parody”.
The image appeared shortly after Israel announced the closure of its embassy in Dublin, following Ireland’s support for a petition at the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide and its decision to recognise Palestinian statehood.
We analyzed the viral image using online AI detection tools. Hive Moderation reported a 99 percent likelihood that the image was AI-generated, while TrueMedia.org confirmed a 99 percent certainty of its AI origin.
Neither Bono nor Geldof has made any public statements regarding the Israel-Hamas war in recent weeks, and there is no credible evidence that either has expressed support for Israel. However, in 2011, Geldof called for peace between Israel and Palestine. In 2023, Bono condemned the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and voiced support for peace between the two sides.
The verdict
The viral image of Irish musicians Bono and Bob Geldof holding the Israeli national flag is a fabrication, most likely created using Artificial Intelligence.
This report first appeared on logicallyfacts.com, and has been republished on ABP Live as part of a special arrangement. Apart from the headline, no changes have been made in the report by ABP Live.
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