On the morning of the 10th, President Lee Jae-myung shared on X (formerly Twitter) a video that showed "Israeli soldiers abusing Palestinian children," sparking controversy. When it was confirmed to be footage from two years ago unrelated to the recent Middle East war, Lee added a post on X that afternoon saying "action has already been taken." The People Power Party criticized it as "the president spread fake news and demonized another country" and an "diplomatic setback."
That morning, Lee shared a video posted by the "Jvnior" account on X and said, "I need to find out whether this is true and, if so, what actions were taken," adding, "It is no different from the forced comfort women issue we raise, the Holocaust of Jews, or killings during wartime."
"Jvnior" is a Palestinian content creator who reports on the situation on the ground in Gaza and urges international attention. The account has 152,000 followers. Jvnior posted the video, saying, "IDF (Israel Defense Forces) soldiers tortured a Palestinian child and then threw the child off a roof. They call themselves 'the most moral army.'"
However, four hours later that afternoon on X, Lee wrote, "The video shows a real situation that occurred in Sep. 24," and added, "I am told that Israel has already conducted a related investigation and taken action." He belatedly confirmed that the footage was unrelated to the recent Middle East war and reflected that.
Earlier, foreign media including the BBC in the United Kingdom reported at the time in Sep. 2024 that the video showed "Israeli soldiers dropping the bodies of three deceased Palestinians from a building," and said an investigation into the incident was underway.
In the post Lee uploaded on X in the afternoon, Lee said, "If there is any small relief, it was not a living person but a body, but even so, such treatment of a body violates international law." Lee continued, "The countless tragedies in history have taught us that human rights are the highest and best value above all," and added, "We must not repeat the lessons left on painful wounds with repeated horrors."
On this, People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok wrote on Facebook, "Now you say it was a video from two years ago, and then you said it is 'a small relief' if it was a body," adding, "The president's conduct is as light as a feather. Not a self-styled 'diplomatic genius' but a 'diplomatic liability.'"
Song Eon-seog, the party's floor leader, also said, "Is the Republic of Korea effectively taking Iran's side in a wartime situation?" The point was that, amid the military standoff among the United States, Israel, and Iran, the South Korean president's remarks could be read as if antagonizing Israel.
Seong Il-jong, a People Power Party lawmaker who chairs the National Assembly's defense committee, also said, "Just a few days ago, the person who said 'fake news must be punished severely' posted recklessly without even checking whether it was fake news. Is that acceptable?" He added, "Since the president of the Republic of Korea spread fake news and demonized another country, how will you take responsibility for this serious diplomatic problem?"