Claim: The Sindh Government directed law enforcement officers to seal off the Punjab Chowrangi area in Karachi due to a surge in COVID-19 cases Fact: The video was filmed in Bara Kahu, an area in Islamabad, which was locked down last week by the administration after 11 new COVID-19 cases were detected. On 1 April […]
CLAIM: According to viral posts shared on Facebook and Twitter, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has been ranked 4th best in the world and 2nd best in Asia by the World Health Organization for timely measures taken to combat COVID-19. FACT: WHO Country Representative in Pakistan Dr Palitha Gunarathna Mahipala praised the governments timely […]
CLAIM: A Whatsapp message went viral, claiming 25 students at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) are suspected to have contracted the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) by sharing a flight with 15 confirmed COVID-19 patients. FACT: No confirmed COVID-19 cases were present on the flight. All LUMS students on the flight in question have […]
CLAIM: Based on an anonymous tip, a Facebook page with 93,000 followers posted an alleged witness account claiming there are 745 registered cases of 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) at the Aga Khan University Hospital in Karachi. FACT: According to the World Health Organisation, the most reliable source for information regarding confirmed cases of COVID-19, there […]
CLAIM: Chinese officials are on standby with 100,000 “duck troops” to assist in Pakistan’s national locust emergency, Chinese experts recommend the use of ducks in Pakistan over pesticides and other methods FACT: Zhang Long, part of the delegation of Chinese experts sent to Pakistan to assist in the locust emergency, rejected the report that China […]
Claim: Rumours are spreading on social media claiming Pakistan’s first confirmed coronavirus patient has been released from Aga Khan University Hospital. Fact: The patient is still admitted at Aga Khan University Hospital. Social media has been inundated with misinformation and disinformation since news of the 2019 Novel coronavirus outbreak spread in December 2019. On 26 […]
CLAIM: Pakistan is manufacturing a cure for the 2019 Novel Coronavirus and exporting it to China in large quantities. FACT: Although some researchers believe a drug called Chloroquine Phosphate could help treat the disease, on 20 February 2020, Dr. Janet Diaz, lead for clinical case management in the WHO Health Emergencies program, said there is […]
What is coronavirus? A coronavirus is a common organism that causes an infection in the nose, sinus or upper throat. The novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new coronavirus that has not been identified previously. 2019 Novel Coronavirus, or 2019-nCoV, is a new respiratory virus first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. According to the Centers […]
#1: Fire tenders with the help of water tankers provided by the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board put out the fire by 2am. Fire brigade officials told news organisations that they were called to the scene at approximately 10pm and the fire was extinguished around 2:30am. The Soch Fact Check team visited Teen Hatti to […]
CLAIM: Facebook page, ZSN News, claimed Prime Minister Imran Khan announced March 1 onwards, Friday and Saturday would be full holidays, and Sunday would be a working day. FACT: Although the image was made to look like a TV News screenshot, it was created by the Facebook page admin. No such change has been planned, […]
CLAIM: Deceased Pashtun poet and academic Arman Loni was an Afghan immigrant. FACT: Although Pashtuns can be referred to as ethnically ‘Afghan’, Arman Loni was born in Pakistan and is therefore not an immigrant. VERDICT: False The Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) was once again trending on Twitter on Sunday, January 12, after the Pashtun Long March […]
Claim: 183 arsonists were charged for starting bushfires in Australia, bushfires are primarily caused by people. Fact: Only 24 people were charged for deliberately starting bushfires, which is fewer than in previous years. Bushfires in Australia are becoming more common due to climate change. Verdict: False New South Wales (NSW – an Eastern state of […]