A video of people protesting on the streets with their mobile flashlights on went viral on social media. Sharing the video, users claimed that the video shows the American public protesting against Donald Trump after the release of the Epstein Files.
Instagram Link | Archived Link.
However, upon investigation, we discovered that the claim was misleading. The viral video is AI-generated. Here’s the fact check.
Fact Check
We started our investigation by taking screenshots from the viral video and conducting a reverse image search. This led us to multiple posts that contained the viral video.
One such post on Instagram has a caption, “Amazing courage and bravery!
✨ To learn more about this post, including the use of AI in a scene, please read the artist’s statement below.
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Repost from @elnaz555
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A digital tribute to the current protests happening in Iran.
A video recently surfaced showing mass crowds in the dark streets of Tehran, turning on their cellphone lights after the government shut off street lighting to hide their numbers. That moment inspired me to recreate the scene through art using AI.
This piece is not a replacement for reality! It’s a reflection of it, a way to help more people see what’s happening especially since the entire country is in a digital blackout for the last 4 days.
You can find the original video by searching “Iran Protests 2026” on IG.”
Taking this clue, using a relevant keyword search, we found the Instagram handle of the creator of this video.
We found the viral video on this Instagram handle uploaded on 11 January 2026.
The caption of the post read, “All Eyes on Iran.
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A digital tribute to the current protests happening in Iran.
A video recently surfaced showing mass crowds in the dark streets of Tehran, turning on their cellphone lights after the government shut off street lighting to hide their numbers. That moment inspired me to recreate the scene through art using AI.
This piece is not a replacement for reality! It’s a reflection of it, a way to help more people see what’s happening especially since the entire country is in a digital blackout for the last 4 days.
You can find the original video by searching “Iran Protests 2026” on IG.”
Moreover, AI-Detector tools suggested that the video was generated using AI.
This makes it clear that the viral video is AI-generated.
Conclusion
From our investigation, we can say that the claim is misleading. The viral video doesn’t show a protest by the Americans against Donald Trump after the release of the Epstein Files. The video has been available on the internet before the release of the Epstein Files. It has been created using AI. According to the creator of the video, it was inspired by the Iranian protests that started on 28 December 2025.
Title:AI-Generated Video Is Going Viral As A Protest Against Donald Trump After The Release Of The Epstein Files.
Fact Check By: Debanjana baishyaResult: Misleading
