Syrian boy tricked into believing there was an airstrike

A Syrian boy was left petrified after pranksters tricked him into thinking a plane flying in the skies above him was a bomber about to launch an airstrike.

The young boy was filmed sitting in an Istanbul playground when he is tapped on the shoulder by a man warning him of the fictitious attack, the Daily Mail reports.

The panicked youngster scrambles to his feet and can be seen running around the penned in playground before desperately clambering over the fence, all the while searching the sky for  bombers above.

As the boy finds safety under a nearby tree, the mean spirited Turkish tricksters can be heard laughing at him.

After watching the boy in a terrified state, the prankster confesses his joke an April Fool's, The Express reports.

The unnamed pranksters have been criticised on social media, with one YouTube user likening them to "animals".