A section of the U.S.-Mexico border near Eagle Pass, Texas, is at the center of a standoff between the state and President Joe Biden’s administration.
Eagle Pass has become one of the busiest spots on the southern U.S. border for migrants illegally crossing from Mexico.
A Supreme Court order issued on Jan. 22 allows Border Patrol agents to remove razor wire installed to deter migrant crossings near Eagle Pass. But some Texas officials, including Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, say the state will continue to put up razor wire at the border, despite the Supreme Court allowing for its removal.
A video shared on social media on Jan. 29 claims to show tanks at the Texas border amid the state’s clash with the Biden administration. People in the comments questioned whether the video was actually filmed in Texas.
THE QUESTION
Does this video show tanks at the Texas border?
THE SOURCES
- RevEye, a reverse image search tool
- Google Maps
- VERIFY analysis of the video
THE ANSWER
No, this video does not show tanks at the Texas border. It was filmed in Chile.
WHAT WE FOUND
The video circulating online does not show tanks at the Texas border. It was shot in Chile and appeared online at least several months prior to Texas’ current standoff with the Biden administration.
Using RevEye to conduct a reverse image search of a screengrab from the video, VERIFY traced it to a TikTok posted on Nov. 6, 2023.
It’s unclear exactly when the video was filmed or what it shows, but landmarks in the video confirm it was shot in Chile.
A road sign in the video points to “Calama” and “Est. O’Higgins.” Calama is a city in northern Chile. Estación O'Higgins is located in Antofagasta, another city in Northern Chile.
We confirmed the location of the video using Google Maps. The same green road sign, as well as the white buildings and fencing to the right, are visible off a highway close to Estación O'Higgins in the Antofagasta area.
There are other visual clues that the video was not shot in Texas. For example, a truck shown in the video does not appear to have a Texas license plate. Instead, the license plate matches the style and format of those seen in Chile.
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