Short Answer: No — the viral videos circulating on January 7, 2026 do not show the U.S. seizure of the Bella‑1 (Marinera) or Sophia tankers. Official sources confirmed the seizures that day, but the specific clips shared online predate those events. One clip was uploaded months earlier, and another is actually a March 19, 2021 U.S. Marine Corps training exercise that has been repeatedly misattributed.
Fact Check: Viral Videos Do Not Show U.S. Seizure Of Bella‑1 (Marinera) Or Sophia
Lead Stories says: Unrelated
Several videos circulating online were presented as footage of a U.S. operation to seize the oil tankers Bella‑1 (also reported as Marinera) and Sophia on January 7, 2026. Those clips, however, do not document the interdictions: they predate the reported captures and have been misattributed.
Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at x.com/visionergeo
What The Viral Posts Claimed
Posts on X published January 7, 2026 asserted that U.S. airborne forces were carrying out rapid helicopter landings on Bella‑1 and that an operation to seize a tanker allegedly protected by a Russian submarine was underway.
What The Record Shows
Official Announcements: On January 7, 2026, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that U.S. authorities had seized two tankers linked to Venezuela: Sophia and the Russian‑flagged Marinera (also referred to as Bella‑1).
Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of page at google.com
Russian Registry Note: The Russian Ministry of Transportation confirmed Marinera was granted temporary permission to sail under the Russian flag on December 24, 2025.
Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at x.com/NSTRIKE1231
Why The Videos Are Misleading
Preexisting Uploads: One widely shared clip attributed to the January 7 seizure was uploaded online months before the reported operation. According to metadata accessible via Google’s "About this" information, that video predates the captures, so it cannot be footage of the January 7 events.
Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post youtube.com/shorts/UImrLJj2TnY
Training Footage Mislabeled As An Interdiction: Another viral clip circulating the same day was posted by the @NSTRIKE1231 account on X but matches a Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) video identified as a March 19, 2021 recording of a 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit training exercise. A version of the same sequence (troops climbing a boarding ladder) appeared on YouTube in October 2025 and was previously flagged as mislabeled in a Snopes fact check on December 15, 2025.
Takeaway
While official sources confirmed the U.S. seizures of Sophia and Marinera/Bella‑1 on January 7, 2026, the specific viral videos shared to illustrate those operations do not show those events. They are older clips that have been repurposed and misattributed.
How To Verify Similar Clips
- Check upload dates and metadata ("About" info on platforms such as Google or YouTube).
- Look for original sources (official military releases, reputable news outlets, or DVIDS for U.S. military footage).
- Use reverse video or image search to find earlier instances of the same clip.
- Compare thumbnails and on‑screen details (uniforms, vessels, timestamps) against confirmed sources.
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