According to SynthID, a tool from Google for identifying AI-generated content, this image contains a digital watermark indicating it was created or edited with Google’s AI tools.

A visual analysis also reveals several common AI "hallucinations" and inconsistencies:

Anatomical errors: If you look closely at the hands and limbs of the soldiers, some appear distorted or have an incorrect number of fingers.

Scale and proportion: The size of the jet in the background is inconsistent with the people standing in front of it.

Nonsensical details: Some of the equipment, patches, and the way figures in the background blend into the landscape are typical of generative AI.

Fact-checking organizations have also identified this specific image and similar ones as part of a wave of AI-generated misinformation circulating on social media regarding international conflicts. There are no credible news reports of such an event occurring.