this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2025
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You might have seen this article circulating. This is from 972 mag, a zionist rag (that pretends to be on the left). The byline specifies "Chinese-made drones" are being used by the IOF to kill people in Palestine.

Except reading the article they clearly, black-on-white state that:

  1. The first batch of drones were bought by Statesians and donated to the IOF (lol, as if 3 billion $$$ a year isn't enough for them)
  2. Later, the US started producing these drones -- the Autel EVO -- in the US and donating them to the IOF.

The drones are also modified by the IOF to have a grenade mechanism attached, like in Ukraine. These are photography drones, they're being used for war because they're good quality otherwise.

In August 2024, China passed restrictions on the sale of civilian drones for military purposes and Autel themselves (this you can find in a reference linked in the 972 article) is opposed to this misuse of their tech but they can't really do anything about it if the US keeps producing them.

The real story here is the US can't compete with chinese drones so they steal the tech and produce knock-offs. How the times have changed.

972's byline is doubly weird because it's wrong. "Weaponizing Chinese tech" would be more accurate, I'd have problems with that but not as much. "Chinese-made drones" implies they are made in China or by China, which is not true.

This is a bit of a rant but I need comrades to stop falling for anti-AES propaganda everytime it happens. People instantly jumped on the "China is selling weapons to enemies of communism!" point. No. China does not sell weapons to the IOF, their tech is being misused. They don't sell weapons to the Philippines or provide them, they don't provide weapons to the US, they don't provide weapons to Ukraine, they don't provide weapons to anyone you've heard them provide weapons too.

I'll tell you who provides weapons though. The UK. The US. France. They find new ways to kill people in atrocious ways, and then send this experimental tech to the IOF to be tested on Palestinians. They have missiles that fire sharp steel blades upon impact cutting through everything it crosses in a 10 meter radius. They have bombs that deliver compound shrapnel that leaves almost no entry sign, but will shatter your spine completely.

Oooh but no, you can modify a photography drone by 3d printing a component, this means China must stop producing commercial quadcopters and leave the tech solely in the hands of the US!!! I am being very dialectical 🤓

Don't lose sight of what's actually important here. Stop looking towards what China does (which it doesn't do anyway) and look to your own countries instead. They're the ones enabling genocides.

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[–] Cowbee@hexbear.net 18 points 1 day ago

Yep, I've seen people increasingly falling for loaded articles against the PRC. It's easier to see through when it isn't related to anything immediately moral, ie "China is going to collapse!" narratives that China Watchers push, but when it's tied to potential failings of the PRC with regard to genuine struggles, like Palestinian Liberation, people tend to read the media less critically.

I can't say I blame people for wishing China did more, after all, many of us live in countries actively contributing to the genocide, so we often push our agency onto AES countries. This is, of course, wrong, we need to push to what we can actually do to stop the genocide ourselves, but from an emotional perspective I can see why doomerism can manifest into anti-AES stances, which needs to be thoroughly understood so that it doesn't take root. Imperialists weilding the left against the left is an old weapon in the armory, we need to be vigilant.

[–] cfgaussian@lemmygrad.ml 37 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (2 children)

Too many people still haven't grasped this basic truth: if it's in a pro-Zionist or pro-imperialist publication, it is likely, in some way or another, bullshit. It doesn't necessarily need to be all lies, but it can and very often is a case of twisting half-truths, misleading framing and intentionally deceptive choice of language. The same applies to analysis derived from so-called "OSINT" sources, which can sometimes appear trustworthy but very often are a tool of Zionist and imperialist psychological warfare. It is easier to be deceived than most people think.

I also think some people are just so paranoid about "their side" not being pure enough that they will jump at any opportunity to have their fears validated, because it feels good in a sort of masochistic way to wallow in negativity than risk later disappointment or embarrassment. In my opinion it is the same emotional mechanism that leads to the toxic cycles of alternating defeatism and triumphalism that we observe sometimes in anti-imperialist circles which is not productive but feels more emotionally cathartic than maintaining a sober and level head.

[–] CriticalResist8@lemmygrad.ml 26 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

I'm more interested in seeing people join Pal Action to sabotage Elbit factories (and the factory in the US that produces these Autel drones too!) than seeing them take to social media to criticize China to an audience of liberals who already went through 4 years of HK riots-Uyghur 'genocide'-South China Sea claims cycle. Priorities.

[–] driving_crooner@lemmy.eco.br 12 points 2 days ago (1 children)

It doesn't necessarily need to be all lies, but it can and very often is a case of twisting half-truths, misleading framing and intentionally deceptive choice of language.

"Propaganda is in the emphasis" - Citations Needed

[–] MarxMadness@lemmygrad.ml 9 points 1 day ago

*The atomic unit of propaganda isn't lies, but emphasis.

[–] RedWizard@hexbear.net 18 points 2 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (2 children)

This bothered me too on first sight. Here is a comment from another thread I made: https://hexbear.net/comment/6320322

Here is the attached article about US Zionists shipping these drones to the IOF: https://newlinesmag.com/reportage/a-fanatical-israeli-settlement-is-funded-by-new-york-suburbanites/

The appeal for drones, sent out to Gordon’s mailing list, has since grown into a “thermal drone matching campaign” run by the One Israel Fund, another charity based in the Five Towns that supports West Bank settlements. The group hosts tours of the West Bank and holds annual wine-tasting barbecues in the Five Towns to fund settlement security projects. Although it usually raises $3 million per year, the One Israel Fund took in $2.5 million in the month after Oct. 7, according to the Long Island Herald.


I had a back forth with someone from ml earlier today about this article, a post they have since deleted. These drones must have been bought between the July 31, 2023 export restrictions on drone tech and the July 2024 adjustments to those restrictions. The drones do not drop bombs, ~~they have a universal mechanism that can drop anything and Israel has created a mechanism to attach to that universal mechanism to drop grenades.~~

You can get attachments to the drone (aftermarket I think, not sure of the manufacturer makes a 1st party accessory that does this), that can facilitate dropping things. Likely the Israeli IOF is modifying this attachment or building their own. That's what the "iron ball" is in the article. The drone isn't equipped to drop anything until an attachment is used.

As it stands now China will not ship these drones to Israel. According to Autel, they have banned the sale of their drones to the entire region. They've made two statements on the matter. Here:

DJI has a similar statement pre 2023:

On Amazon and other platforms you can not get these drones shipped to Israel:

In the 9 months between the start of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and the adjustments to drone exports Israel bought ~~20,000~~ Chinese made drones (likely through consumer channels) and also relied on civilian donations of drones.

“Soldiers independently launched crowdfunding campaigns,” L. explained. “Our company received around NIS 500,000 (approximately $150,000) in donations, which we also used to buy drones.” C., another soldier, recalled being asked to sign thank-you letters to Americans who had donated EVO drones to his battalion.

In a Facebook group named “The Israeli Drone Pilots Community,” many posts request EVO drone donations for units in Gaza. Multiple pages on Headstart (an Israeli crowdfunding startup) were also created to independently raise funds for drone purchases.

The timeline on this purchase is unclear. It's also unclear if the changes to the export restrictions are a response to this purchase.

correction: Israel intends to buy 20,000 Israeli made drones.

From everything I've read and seen there isn't currently direct sales of drones from China to Israel.

[–] CriticalResist8@lemmygrad.ml 7 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Do you have a source for the latch mechanism? I don't see it on the pictures but I'm having trouble finding good pictures of the model.

My understanding is usually this is something they 3d-print completely aftermarket (at least in Ukraine they did).

[–] RedWizard@hexbear.net 7 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

OK I was slightly mistaken, You can get attachments to the drone (aftermarket I think, not sure of the manufacturer makes a 1st party accessory that does this), that can facilitate dropping things. Likely the Israeli IOF is modifying this attachment or building their own. That's what the "iron ball" is in the article.

So that's another shakey leg on this stool of a story. The drone isn't equipped to drop anything until an attachment is used.

[–] CriticalResist8@lemmygrad.ml 6 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Okay I wasn't aware you could just buy them lol! I didn't know anyone was selling those

[–] RedWizard@hexbear.net 5 points 1 day ago

Yeah when I originally wrote these comments I saw one in the Israeli Amazon (in Hebrew) that had a very similar image to the one I linked so I assumed it was a core feature of the drone. But yeah, you can just buy them. You probably pair the RF of the attachment to your controller so you can release it with a button press.

[–] RedWizard@hexbear.net 5 points 1 day ago

I really need to synthesize all this information into its own post.

[–] 666@lemmygrad.ml 5 points 2 days ago

Beautiful, comrade, I'm saving this one!

[–] ButtBidet@hexbear.net 21 points 2 days ago (1 children)

When I read in a non-left source that "AES state did bad", my first instinct is just not to trust it. Maybe if video or academic sources demonstrate otherwise, maybe I might eventually change my mind, but it has a big hill to climb in my brain for that to happen. We've seen so much fabrication out of pro-capitalist news sources, why the fuck do people still trust them at face value?

[–] cfgaussian@lemmygrad.ml 10 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Exactly! Always approach sources with a known history of operating as vectors of disinformation and psychological warfare with extreme skepticism. Always look for evidence and corroboration from reliable sources before taking anything they say at face value. And I would also like to add that this same skepticism and caution should be extended to so-called "OSINT" as well.

The OP has written an excellent piece about this subject. I've been disappointed to see some folks in anti-imperialist circles base geopolitical and military analysis on data put out by these so-called "OSINT" sources with insufficient skepticism as to whether they are really what they claim to be, or why this information in particular has been made available and what narrative those who control the flow of this information are trying to shape.

[–] bennieandthez@lemmygrad.ml 13 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

im a simple person, whenever i see an article explicitly saying "chinese made", i immediately get skeptical. i never see them say explictly that israel is using US made weapons.

[–] Erika3sis@hexbear.net 9 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

[China doesn't] provide weapons to anyone you've heard them provide weapons too [sic].

And the Kiwirok bombings (Indonesia / Papua conflict)? Was that a similar case to the modified Autel drones being used in Ghazza, or were cases like Kiwirok the impetus for China's current restrictions on the sale of drones for military purposes?

[–] CriticalResist8@lemmygrad.ml 14 points 2 days ago (1 children)

The only mention I could find of the drone used in the attack being a Blowfish is from friendlyjordies, and I have yet to watch his entire 45 minute video just to find this mention.

The drone was described by eyewitnesses and matched to the Blowfish afterwards. It could also be an "Israeli" Golden Eagle, which looks similar:

Blowfish for comparison:

Despite Indonesia's policy on Palestine they still acquire "Israeli" tech, such as the IAI drone, through middlemen.

I reiterate what I said in the OP, that our countries are the ones enabling genocide. The attack was carried out by 4 helicopters, one of which was Airbus, one drone (the one in question), and used Serbian-made Krušik mortar shells and French Thales rockets. Indonesia is confirmed to possess at least one blowfish, but whether it was used at Kiwirok is another question, and we also don't know at this time where exactly the got it from and in what condition.

[–] Erika3sis@hexbear.net 5 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Very interesting, thank you. What would you say was the background for the current restrictions, then?

[–] CriticalResist8@lemmygrad.ml 16 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Mostly Ukraine from their wording imo

[–] Erika3sis@hexbear.net 7 points 2 days ago

Hmm. Well, thank you for your time.

[–] Vampire@hexbear.net -5 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The article does say they're photography drones and the Israelis are weaponising them without Chinese consent.

You're making a controversy out of nothing.

I feel like asking whether you were born yesterday. Have you not seen any anti-AES propaganda, or the rounds Western MSM make when they're pushing some anti-AES horseshit? It's always innuendos, insinuations, half-truths and fabrications that were corrected by the text itself or its sources, but the intention is that the liberal audience doesn't think sufficiently deeply to realise the insinuations have no basis or that they don't read long enough to see the part of the article counter to the headline.

If you think there's nothing to think about, ask yourself this: Why mention "Chinese-made" in the lead? The average article regarding other conflicts doesn't mention where the weapons come from, doubly so for the Zionist entity since most of their weapons are Usian. What's different here?