A photo of a dead man surrounded by dogs has spread on social media, with the claim that the photo is of a Palestinian from the Gaza Strip. The photo’s caption reads: “The owner of the dogs was martyred, so they sat next to his body in deep silence, as if they were guarding an undying loyalty, and they realize in their silence that the one who loved them has departed and will never return. In the moment of loss, they were more loyal than humans, yes, more loyal than that silent world.”
Kashif verified the image via reverse search on Google, and found that the image is old and the claim is misleading. The image was published by several Yemeni websites of a homeless Yemeni man who used to take care of stray dogs. When he died, the dogs surrounded him. A Yemeni news page published the image on 20/10/2020, with the following text: “Stray dogs surrounded a homeless Yemeni man who spent years of his life taking care of them, when he died the dogs refused to allow anyone to approach his body.”
Yemeni Voice website also published the same photo on 20/10/2020, titled: “He spent his life feeding them.. This is what stray dogs did to a Yemeni after his death.”
Since 7 October 2023, the Israeli occupation army has committed thousands of massacres that resulted in the killing of 42,603 citizens and the injury of 99,800 others, the majority of whom are children and women, according to the latest statistics from the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
| Sources of Claim | Sources of Verification |
| Deema Azreen Hani Abu Rezeq Brahim Lamri Fadi Khalaf Sara Maher Saleh | Yemeni News “Yemen Voice” Website Palestinian Ministry of Health |