Claim: Peshawar’s Islamia College University lecturer Dr Bashir Ahmad was killed over a blasphemy allegation. Fact: The claim is false, as confirmed by Islamia College University’s provost and a journalist from Peshawar. On 19 February 2023, Twitter account @DayWithNews posted a tweet (archive) claiming that Dr Bashir Ahmad, a lecturer at the Department of English […]
Claim: An image featuring a large group of people, law enforcement officers, and multiple barricades is from Zaman Park, Lahore, where supporters of Imran Khan have gathered to prevent authorities from arresting him. Fact: The picture is, in fact, from February 2023 and shows people gathered outside the Lahore High Court. It does not show […]
Claim: A video shows a group of police officers in Lahore in a verbal altercation with women belonging to the PTI, with one of the cops yelling, “Don’t touch me”, and another pushing a woman. The clip goes on to show police baton-charging people near a container and behind barbed wire at the scene. Fact: […]
Claim: A photo shows a giant crack in a road in Swat’s Shangla region after a 6.5-magnitude earthquake hit northwestern areas of Pakistan on 21 March 2023. Fact: The image is more than four years old and has nothing to do with the March 2023 earthquake. On 21 March 2023, Twitter user @Alitanveer597 tweeted a […]
Claim: Lahore Police have arrested a minor boy for “dressing up as a girl and begging”. Fact: The child has not been arrested but handed over to the Child Protection & Welfare Bureau (CP&WB). On 30 January 2023, Express News Urdu published a news story titled, “معذور والدین کی دیکھ بھال کیلیے لڑکی بن کر […]
Claim: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was asked in an interview, “What is the biggest problem facing the next generation and what should we do to solve it today?”. He responded by saying the main goal is to stop militant Islamic regimes from getting nuclear weapons and that Pakistan is one of the two countries […]
Claim: King Charles III offered Imran Khan to become the King of the United Kingdom. Fact: The claim originated from a satirical report, which was eventually disseminated as real news. On 15 March 2023, Facebook user ‘Abdul Ghani Muhammdi’ posted a visual (archive) featuring Imran Khan, the former prime minister and chief of the Pakistan […]
Claim: A video shows several buildings collapsing after a sizable earthquake hit many countries, including Pakistan, on 21 March 2023. Fact: The video does not show recent visuals from Pakistan. In fact, it is actually from the February 2023 earthquake that struck Turkey. On Tuesday evening, a powerful 6.5 magnitude earthquake jolted Afghanistan and Pakistan, […]
Claim: A photo shows Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s rally at Minar-e-Pakistan, Lahore held on 25 March 2023. Fact: The photo taken on 29 April 2018 shows PTI’s Minar-e-Pakistan rally in Lahore held five years ago. Fact or Fiction? On 26 March 2022, columnist Orya Maqbool Jan posted a photo showing the aerial view of a public gathering […]
Claim: A video shows PTI supporters — transgender people and women — attacking the police during the recent clashes in Zaman Park, Lahore. Fact: The video is from September 2022, when a clash erupted between transgender persons and police in Defence Housing Authority, Lahore. Fact or Fiction? On 14 March 2023, Facebook user Ahmed Khan […]
Claim: A video posted by Tiktok user @badshahkhan123pti shows a beeper from journalist Hamid Mir’s show that says “Imran Khan’s historic jalsa at minar-e-pakistan lahore” and claims that it is from Imran Khan’s recent March 2023 rally. Fact: The beeper from Hamid Mir’s show is not from Imran Khan’s recent March 2023 Jalsa at the […]
Claim: Miftah Ismail said that Imran Khan is a good politician, the military helped remove him from power, and elections should be held within 90 days. Fact: Miftah Ismail’s interview with We News was taken out of context. Three separate sentences were spliced together, which inaccurately portrayed his views as supporting Imran Khan. On 20 […]