Claim: An image shows a funeral procession of people killed in the Parachinar attacks in November 2024.
Fact: The image is from December 2009 and shows Shia Muslims carrying mock coffins during a mourning procession observed during the Islamic month of Muharram.
On 22 November, the National Commission for Human Rights, a federal statutory body, posted a picture (archive) on X apparently showing a mourning procession carrying the coffins of those killed in Parachinar in November. The caption reads, “NCHR condemns in the strongest terms the brutal attack on passengers at #Parachinar. Deepest condolences & prayers to the families. Extremism & violence has no place in this country. We demand urgent action, redress & justice from the govt.”
The caption implies that this image was taken in Parachinar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recently.
What’s happening in Parachinar?
On 21 November, gunmen opened fire on convoys of Shia pilgrims who were travelling from Parachinar in the Kurram district to Peshawar, in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. At least 42 people, including women and children were killed by the gunmen, according to news reports.
Shia Muslim individuals then reportedly attacked the Bagan Bazaar in the Sunni-majority area, setting the market and homes on fire in retaliation.
This incident caused a retaliatory attack against the Sunni population of the area, and the ensuing conflict between the two sides has killed at least 130 people as of 1 December.
Both sides agreed to a fragile seven day ceasefire on 24 November, brokered by an official government delegation, which was later extended for 10 more days.
Kurram district, which lies near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, has been long marred by sectarian violence over land disputes. Upper Kurram, where Parachinar is located, is the only region with a majority Shia Muslim population in Pakistan. Lower Kurram and Central Kurram are, however, predominantly Sunni-majority areas.
In July, tribal clashes over a land dispute killed at least 49 people and injured 200 others in the Kurram district. Similar clashes in September killed 46 and injured 91 people in the region.
In the past, the region witnessed the deadliest episode of violence between 2007 and 2012 that killed more than 2000 people, according to Al Jazeera.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check reverse-searched the photo and found it has no connection to the killings in Parachinar in November 2024.
Fars News, a news agency run by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), posted the photo in its article (in the sixth row) from November 2013, about Muharram, an Islamic month when Muslims observe the death anniversary of Hussain Ibn Ali, grandson of Prophet Muhammad.
Pars Today, another Iranian publication, also carried the photo further down in its article about various Muharram practices observed in different countries, published in October 2017. The publication has linked the photo to Pakistan.
Another article about Muharram rituals in Karachi from July 2024 also carried this photo here.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s article (archive) about the precarious security situation in Karachi, published in January 2010, carried the photo as a cover. The caption of the photo reads, “Pakistani Shi’a carry fake coffins through Karachi after the bomb blast that killed more than 40 people during the Ashura holiday on December 28.” Here the photo is credited to AFP.
The caption refers to a deadly bomb blast that took place on 28 December 2009, when a suicide bomber targeted a Muharram procession in Karachi, killing at least 30 people and leaving several injured.
Taking cues from this caption, we conducted a keyword search which led us to an original image on Getty Images, credited to “ASIF HASSAN/AFP via Getty Images,” dated 30 December 2009. The description states that this photo actually shows “Shiite Muslims” observing Muharram and carrying “mock coffins during a mourning procession in Karachi.” More photos of the same procession, taken from different angles, can be seen here and here.
Soch Fact Check, therefore, concludes the image in the claim has no connection to the Parachinar killings in November 2024.
Virality
The post was shared on X here (archive), here (archive). In July 2024, the post appeared on X here, here (first image), here, here (first image), here, here.
On Instagram, it appeared here (second photo). In July, it appeared here and here.
In July 2024, Facebook user linked this image to Parachinar here (see the complete post for description).
On Threads, the image appeared here in November with a caption about sectarian violence, but it doesn’t mention Parachinar. In July, it appeared here.
The Wire misleadingly used it as a cover photo on 23 November with the caption, “A photo, circulating on social media, showing people carrying the coffins of those killed in Parachinar.”
Shia Waves, a religious publication, carried the misleading photo on 25 November.
It also appeared in context of the recent sectarian violence in Parachinar here.
Conclusion: The image showing a procession of coffins is not linked to the sectarian violence and killings in the Kurram district in November 2024.
Background image in cover photo: The Friday Times
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