In a TikTok video published by the IDF in July following the last round of strikes on Iran, members of the so-called "After Effects" cell within the IDF Spokesperson's Unit Post Production wing soldiers describe working weeks prior to strikes under “prime-minister-level secrecy” to prepare visuals
The animation centers on a few buildings (implied targets) displayed as point geometry evocative of LiDAR data
The extent to which this is a generated effect meant to convey precision vs data derived geometry is unclear
Past work on these IDF animations suggests the former
bsky.app/profile/jack...
Amidst strikes on Iran by the US and Israel today, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit released a pre-made 3D animation of strike targets in Kermanshah, Iran
Three years ago:
Thanks for the kind words Adam! Truly was a group effort
This is an amazing analysis that integrates multiple sources of data to show ICE enforcement intensification in Nashville. Must read.
This investigation was a collaboration with
@motherjones.com, @nashvillebanner.bsky.social, News Channel 5, Nashville Noticias, and the Institute for Public Service Reporting - Memphis
You can find links to stories here + our methodology write-up:
www.lighthousereports.com/methodology/...
By linking federal detention data to traffic stops, we followed people from roadside encounters through ICE custody and onto deportation flights.
We found 75% of those detained had no criminal record.
Footage also captured officers physically marked detainees with Sharpies to track who made the arrest as teams of law enforcement apparently competed to detain the most people
nashvillebanner.com/2026/02/19/i...
We also reviewed 50+ hours of dashcam and bodycam footage, showing how troopers used minor traffic pretexts so ICE could intervene, often bypassing basic protections.
Recordings captures agents joking and celebrating arrests
Last May, Tennessee Highway Patrol joined ICE on the streets of Nashville.
We @lighthousereports.com + partners mapped the traffic stops and used 1M+ ICE records, dashcam video, and court files to show how supposed routine encounters became deportations.
I’m in Kuala Lumpur this week for the Global Investigative Journalism Conference #GIJC2025
If you’re attending and want to connect / talk about visual investigations, remote sensing, open-source methods, etc. definitely reach out!
On a Saturday night I stumbled across something on the internet that made me feel like ****** my pants. A giant dataset of real surveillance operations targeting 1000s of people across nearly every country. Unraveling it and the mysterious company behind it has consumed 1.5 years of my life
Totally, the similarities there is something we discussed early on while looking into this topic. Super interesting to consider. Although in that case the illustration was from the Times of London, iirc
Have you seen 3D animations from the IDF showing secret Hamas hideouts?
According to Israel's +972 magazine, many have "serious spatial inaccuracies or prefabricated assets—sourced not from classified intelligence but rather from commercial libraries, content creators, and cultural institutions."
Definitely, this is something we also discussed parallels with early on
Last week we @citizenlab.ca published an investigation into a likely Israeli-directed AI influence op targeting Iranians citizenlab.ca/2025/10/ai-e...
This superb analysis by @jacksapoch.bsky.social & colleagues of 43 official IDF videos found recycled 3D animations and spatial inaccuracies 👇
Disinformation, now in 3D.
Thank you, Eliot!
Thanks for the kind words Thomas 🌱
Thanks dear Eman!
As someone who works with satellite and 3D imagery, this project reinforced how crucial it is to question what’s rendered as truth.
Keep an eye out for some follow ups in different mediums looking ahead
Full story w/ @972mag.com via Oren Ziv:
www.972mag.com/israeli-army...
Over the months, we gathered material and analysis before working with colleagues @srfnews.bsky.social, @972mag.com, and @theferret.scot to bring the investigation together for their respective audiences.
SRF International podcast (via Susanne Brunner) www.srf.ch/audio/intern...
I started working on this research in my spare time with a small group of fellow journos/artists — Nicole Vögele, @jakecharlesrees.bsky.social , & Robin Kötzle — after noticing recurring patterns in IDF 3D videos last year
The Ferret (via @billybriggs24.bsky.social): theferret.scot/idf-scottish...
The TikTok outlines that a specific goal of these animations is to multiply their reach by cultivating secondary coverage
And indeed, dozens of major outlets like BBC, CNN and Sky News have aired them, in part or in full, often without context
These videos are produced in-house by a small animation cell in the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, working mainly in After Effects + Blender
In a TikTok posted after Israel's June attacks on Iran, soldiers describe working weeks under “prime-minister-level secrecy” to prepare visuals
One of the earlier and most-viewed examples was an animation of Al Shifa Hospital, published in October 2023.
The “underground command room” was recycled from a 2022 IDF animation of an UNRWA school in Tel Al-Hawa; the street above was built from prefab @kb-3d.bsky.social storefronts
These assets have been used in IDF videos as recently as September 5, in an animation of the Mushtaha Tower in Gaza City, which was destroyed by Israeli airstrikes the same day
In this video the ground itself is a patch-work quilt of third-party scans of pavement & parking lots
Others assets came from scans made by the Scottish Maritime Museum of their boat-building workshop which was downloaded (via @sketchfab.bsky.social) and reimagined by the IDF adornments for underground missile factories.
Hubert's assets, created as decorations for cyberpunk cityscapes, are used especially widely in animations that the IDF released during their strikes on Iran in June.
Ripped assets from Hubert are shown here in stills from IDF animations, with blue highlights:
