Claim: A fatwa issued ahead of the 2024 general elections in Pakistan advises that it is better to vote for a Muslim candidate than a non-Muslim one. Fact: The fatwa was not issued recently. It was seemingly issued in 2018 in response to a question about PPP leader Hari Ram Kishori Lal’s candidacy. However, it […]
Claim: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar said that according to the United Nations’ Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (UNWGEID), there are approximately 50 cases of enforced disappearances in Balochistan. Fact: Kakar’s statement is misleading; the WGEID’s recent report cited 1,635 enforced disappearances in Pakistan but did not specify Balochistan’s figures. In 2016, […]
Claim: A video shows graves of Baloch people that Pakistan Army soldiers desecrated as the ethnic community marched to Islamabad, demanding an end to alleged human rights abuses. Fact: The video dates as far back as at least 2018 and is not “the state’s ongoing attempts to attack the graves of those killed” allegedly by […]
Claim: A pregnant Thai woman, Natthawaree Mulkan, who was abducted by Hamas following their attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, has delivered a baby in captivity. Fact: The woman who was taken hostage was not pregnant. Both Thailand’s foreign ministry and the woman’s mother have confirmed that the claim is false. On 18 November […]
Claim: The NADRA is “going against” the Constitution of Pakistan and a decision by the Federal Shariat Court by resuming the registration of transgender persons’ identity cards. Fact: The NADRA is not going against either because the Constitution of Pakistan states that a ruling by the Federal Shariat Court cannot take effect until the defined […]
Claim: 40 babies were beheaded during the 2023 Hamas attack in Israel as tensions escalate in Gaza. Fact: The reporter who broke the story says she “believes” an account provided by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), while other journalists who visited the site of the attack said they were not shown any bodies. The Israeli […]
Claim: A crocodile crept into a residential area of Karachi. Fact: The video is not from Karachi, Pakistan, but from the Mahisagar district of India’s Gujarat state. On 26 September 2023, Facebook user ‘ALi Khan AK’ posted a video (archive) showing a group of men trying to capture what appears to be a crocodile in […]
Claim: A picture shows the pulpit from which Imam Hussain delivered sermons. Fact: The raised platform is actually known as St Jeremiah’s Pulpit in the Saqqara necropolis in Giza, Egypt, and has no connection to Imam Hussain. On 28 July 2023, the Facebook user ‘Ahmad Raza’ posted (archive) a photo showing what looks like a […]
Claim: A picture shows a Pakistan Army officer rescuing people stranded on a chairlift that broke down in Battagram on 22 August 2023. Fact: The image does not show a Pakistan Army officer, rather a member of a local adventure tourism company and the three passengers he rescued with the help of a zipline. On […]
Claim: Instagram user @feella.artx has claimed that a March 2023 report is proof the UN has called for the decriminalisation of sexual relations between adults and minors. Fact: The claim is false. A report prepared by the ICJ, UNAIDS, and the OHCHR provides a guideline on the application of criminal laws. It includes suggestions on […]
Claim: United States President Joe Biden has allocated $500,000 to “transgender Pakistani youth English lessons”. Fact: A Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) details a potential programme to be created by eligible partners for the professional development of English teachers from non-mainstream institutions, novice English teachers, transgender youth, as well as Afghan teachers, students, and young […]
Claim: The caption of a video posted on Facebook claims that a naked girl attacked the media at the 2023 Aurat March in Lahore, Pakistan. Fact: The caption has nothing to do with the video, which just shows the reaction of a video blogger, Malik Ali, to the Aurat March. On 9 March 2023, Malik […]