TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Tempo English compiled the top 3 news on Tueday, March 17, 2026. Here are the highlights: Israeli PM Office Refutes Claims of Netanyahu's Death: 'Fake News'; Prabowo Bans Lavish Eid Open Houses for Officials; andFact Check: Video Claiming U.S. Aircraft Carrier Sunk by Iran Is AI-Generated.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dismissed the social media claims that he had passed away.
A correspondent from Anadolu Agency, as reported by NDTV, asked the office if they had a statement regarding the increasing claims on social media that Netanyahu had been assassinated.
“These are fake news; the Prime Minister is fine,” the office responded.
On Friday, Netanyahu shared a press conference video about the US-Israel-Iran war on his X account (formerly Twitter). In the video, some social media users claimed to have seen six fingers on Netanyahu's right hand, sparking rumors that the video was AI-generated.
2. Prabowo Bans Lavish Eid Open Houses for Officials
President Prabowo Subianto has prohibited officials from holding excessively grand open house events during Eid al-Fitr. The open house is a tradition commonly observed by Indonesians, including public figures, during the festive season.
Approaching Eid al-Fitr 1447 Hijriah, Prabowo has asked officials to refrain from hosting extravagant events. He stated that Indonesia needs to practice frugality, starting with its leadership.
"We also need to set an example; open house events should not be overly lavish," Prabowo said at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Friday, March 13, 2026.
3. Fact Check: Video Claiming U.S. Aircraft Carrier Sunk by Iran Is AI-Generated
A video posted on Facebook [archive] claims that the Iranian military successfully destroyed a U.S. aircraft carrier on March 4, 2026. The footage shows dozens of missiles raining down on the aircraft carrier in the middle of the ocean, causing it to burst into flames.
The video shows plumes of black smoke rising high into the sky while several fighter jets parked on the deck are thrown into the sea. The narration in the video states that Washington’s flagship aircraft carrier sank after being struck by Iran’s advanced missiles.
So, is it true that a U.S. aircraft carrier was sunk by Iran's advanced missiles?
FACT CHECK
Tempo verified the content through image analysis and by comparing it with reports from credible sources. The results show that the content was generated by artificial intelligence (AI).
A Veo watermark is visible in the bottom right corner of the video, indicating that it was generated using Google’s Veo AI model.
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