Does a viral video of ships closely grouped together in a body of water actually show the Strait of Hormuz in the fall of 2026? No, that's not true: A topographic analysis matched the distinctive coastline in the video to the area around Chittagong, Bangladesh, a busy port regularly drawing large groups of vessels. Stock photos from established image databases confirmed that large groups of anchored vessels are a regular occurrence in that area.
The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on X where it was published by @Karmabash on Oct. 11, 2026. It opened:
All the oil stuck in Hormuz. Meanwhile Hegseth claims we won.
This is what the video attached to the post looked like on X at the time of writing:
(Image source: post by @Karmabash on X.)
A Community Note added to the post incorrectly linked to fact checks by AFP from April 1, 2021, and AP from March 29, 2021, about a similar video that was also filmed in Bangladesh but was falsely linked to the 2021 Suez Canal blockage -- a different incident from the one claimed in this post.
The 54-second recording in the post -- separate from the videos examined by AFP and AP -- was also made from a plane flying over a body of water crowded with dozens of ships. In the middle of the clip, the footage captured the appearance of a coastline:
(Image source: post by @Karmabash on X.)
The frame showed a unique feature: the bend in the river cutting through land near a larger body of water.
The footage also showed an airplane engine whose appearance was consistent with those found on commercial aircrafts. Given that the video was recorded from a relatively low altitude and passenger jets typically fly much higher, it was reasonable to conclude that the plane was either about to land or had just taken off. That, in turn, suggested the aircraft was near an airport.
Using Google Earth, Lead Stories discovered the Shah Amanat Airport in the Bangladeshi city of Chittagong located at the place with remarkably similar topographic features and identified the approximate coordinates of the filming spot (archived here):
(Image source: Google Earth.)
Less than five miles away from the airport, there was a port:
(Image source: Google Maps.)
The proximity of the port explained the presence of multiple vessels in the water.
Images on stock photo databases -- for example, here (archived here) -- showed that large groups of anchored vessels were not unusual for that area.
Lead Stories found a February 2021 video (archived here) recorded from a plane on the same route, published with the caption:
Fascinating site witnessed early hours yesterday while on a short flight from Port City Chittagong to Dhaka...
That clip also showed multiple anchored vessels, and the water had the same characteristic muddy color:
(Image source: post by @sujeeva-salwatura-49341a36 on LinkedIn.)
When Lead Stories checked a live map with maritime traffic on Oct. 13, 2026, it showed multiple vessels stuck around the port, too:
(Image source: Marinetraffic.)
The video showed a watermark pointing to another account,@mdabdullahalhasan057, that published (archived here) it on Oct. 3, 2026, without any caption.
Lead Stories reviewed the previous video posted by the same user earlier on that day. It showed a unique group of red-roofed buildings:
(Image source: post by @mdabdullahalhasan057 on Instagram.)
Lead Stories established that the group of building showed the island of Bhasan Char located 53 miles away from the airport:
(Image source: Google Earth.)
Lead Stories contacted the poster and the Chittagong port. If Lead Stories receives a response, this article will be updated as appropriate.
