Claim: An image of a man wearing a PTI scarf and holding a weapon shows a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protester marching towards D-Chowk from the ongoing demonstrations in Islamabad.
Fact: The claim is false. The image, which actually shows a protest in Peshawar, is a decade old, first appearing online in 2013. It has been shared multiple times with false claims over the years.
On 26 November 2024, a user on X (formerly Twitter) posted an image (archived) with the caption, “PTI’s peaceful protestors in Islamabad”. The image shows a man wearing a PTI symbol scarf and holding a weapon behind his back.
The post came after PTI workers and supporters began a march towards Islamabad on 24 November on Imran Khan’s call.
Background
For the last few days, Pakistan was witnessing another set of roadblocks and clashes after Imran Khan, the jailed founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and former prime minister, called on his supporters to converge for a protest at D-Chowk in Islamabad on 24 November 2024. The protest was called against the alleged rigging in the 2024 general elections and to demand that Khan and his jailed supporters be released. In response, hundreds of thousands of party supporters and leaders began mobilising from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and parts of Punjab towards the capital.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi issued stern warnings against entering D-Chowk, with the police and law enforcement agencies deploying aggressive crowd control tactics. Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at protesters attempting to enter the area, actions which critics argue violated the right to peaceful assembly. On the other hand, the government condemned “attacks by protesters”. According to official sources, at least six fatalities have occurred during the confrontations till now. Human rights organisation Amnesty International released a statement calling on the Pakistani government to show restraint as the internet remains suspended in Islamabad, making it harder to verify the number of casualties and injuries.
As per latest media reports, protesters reached D-Chowk on 26 November and the military took over the Red Zone after Article 245 was invoked with “shoot-on-sight orders,” and the situation remained tense in the federal capital as several protesters were arrested. However, in the early hours of 27 November, PTI called off the protest “temporarily” after protesters were brutally injured by the law enforcement at D-Chowk.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check investigated the image after it was shared with the claim that protesters are armed. In the current situation, which has escalated quickly, sharing such information without verification can cause chaos and panic on both sides.
A reverse-image search on the picture led to an article published by Express News Urdu in August 2013. The image shared in the newspaper was accompanied by the caption:
پشاور: لوڈ شیڈنگ کے خلاف احتجاج کے دوران پی ٹی آئی کے کارکن نے اسلحہ کمر کے پیچھے چھپا رکھا ہے۔
[“Peshawar: A PTI worker hid his weapon behind his back during a protest against load shedding.”]
A screenshot of the newspaper web version can be seen below:
Screenshot of Express News E-Newspaper with date and image from 2013
Zoom version of the newspaper image
The news refers to 2013 when PTI was ruling the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhuwa; however, no information on the load-shedding protest could be found in detail.
This is not the first time the image was falsely/misleadingly linked to a PTI protest. In December 2014, journalist Asma Sherazi posted the image on X (formerly Twitter), linking it to the PTI Azadi March held from August 2014 to December 2014.
The image resurfaced in 2022 after Imran Khan was ousted through a vote of no confidence, and PTI organised the Azadi March against the decision in May 2022. Soch Fact Check previously debunked this claim here.
Virality
On X, the post received 24,000 views, 460 likes and 290 reposts within a few hours on 26 November. Former Caretaker Minister for Information, Murtaza Solangi also shared the false post here. The archived versions can be seen here.
It was also shared here on Facebook.
Conclusion: The image of a man holding a weapon and wearing a PTI scarf is not from the recent PTI march towards Islamabad in 2024. The image is, in fact, from a protest against load-shedding held in Peshawar in 2013 and has resurfaced over the years with false claims.
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Background image in cover photo: Busniess Recorder
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