Claim: An image shows an army soldier pointing a gun towards protesters during a demonstration held by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in November 2024. Fact: The image appears to be AI-generated. On 30 November, a Threads user posted a photo (archive) apparently showing a Pakistani soldier pointing a gun towards the protesters. The description reads: “Our […]
Claim 1: Fauji Foods has reported a 73% loss of 2.16 billion rupees. Claim 2: The sales of Nurpur butter have dropped by 85%. Fact 1: The 73% loss of 2.16 billion reported by Fauji Foods is from 2022. While stock prices for Fauji companies did drop on 6 December 2024, they have […]
Claim: A doctor displayed anger and frustration at the government after witnessing casualties from the recent PTI protest at D-Chowk. Fact: The video is from 2021 and shows the doctor criticising Imran Khan and the PTI government at the time following a TLP protest.It is not related to the recent PTI protest at D-Chowk. On […]
Claim: Aseefa Bhutto Zardari said that Imran Khan’s life is in danger, and he should be provided with proper medical care. Fact: Aseefa Bhutto Zardari did not say Imran Khan’s life is in danger, nor did she say that medical care should be provided to Khan. On 28 November 2024, a Facebook post […]
Claim: Several popular social media pages shared variations of the claim that said, according to a US study, “You will die seven years earlier if you live In Lahore for one year”. The study referenced is the Air Quality Life Index’s (AQLI) fact sheet for Pakistan, which was published in 2023 and developed by the […]
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, […]
Claim: A video shows Nawaz Sharif belittling Khawaja Asif during a press conference. Fact: Nawaz Sharif did not mock Khawaja Asif or the recent attempt of an attack on him. The posts show only a part of his statement from a longer recording of a press conference, and share it in a false context. In […]
Claim: A video circulating online shows US President Donald Trump speaking in Urdu, pledging to act against the Pakistan Democratic Movement. Fact: The video is doctored. Deepware and audio analyses revealed manipulated audio frequencies and deepfake characteristics. Following Trump’s victory in the 2024 US Presidential election, X user @Tabii_DxB shared a clip (archive) of Trump […]
Claim: An image shows a child who was killed in recent deadly incidents of sectarian violence in Kurram, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Fact: The picture has no connection to sectarian violence in Kurram which erupted in November 2024. The image is from November 2016 when the US and Afghan forces carried out an operation against the Taliban’s […]
Claim: A picture showing a protester who was allegedly pushed off a stack of containers while reportedly praying during the PTI’s November protests is AI-generated. Fact: The picture is real and was not generated using AI. The authentic image, as well as another photo taken shortly afterwards of the protester trying to hang on before […]
Claim: 50% of Muslims and 70% of Pakistanis in the UK are inbred, and the majority of disabled children in the UK are born to Muslim parents. Fact: There is no publicly available data on the proportion of Muslims and Pakistanis that are “inbred” or were a result of a consanguineous marriage. Data on […]
Claim: A video shows PTI protesters swimming across a river to reach Islamabad amid road blockades. Fact: The video was first shared online on 1 September 2023, disproving the claim that PTI protesters swam across a river to attend the 24 November 2024 protest at D-Chowk. On 25 November, the Instagram account Dialogue Pakistan, which […]
Claim: A video shows journalist Matiullah Jan in an army cadet’s uniform being stripped of his rank and discharged from the Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) due to poor character. Fact: The video does not show Matiullah Jan’s expulsion from the PMA. It is actually a digitally manipulated clip from Hum TV’s drama serial ‘Ehd-e-Wafa,’ with […]
Claim: A widely shared video shows a young victim of the recent violence in Parachinar in the Kurram District. Fact: While the violence in Kurram, which began on 21 November 2024, has claimed over 80 lives—including women and children—and injured more than 100, this specific video is not from Pakistan and predates the recent episode […]
Claim: Video shows Maulana Fazl ur Rehman, chief of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Fazl (JUI-F), urging his party members to reach Islamabad and support Pakistan Tehreek Insaf’s protestors in October 2024. Fact: The video of Rehman is from a press conference held in March 2022 and has no connection to either of PTI’s major rallies from October […]
Claim: The ID of a UNRWA teacher, Hani S. Zourob, was found on Yahya Sinwar at the time of his death and belonged to one of the two bodyguards killed along with the Hamas leader on 17 October. Fact: The ID card of Sinwar’s alleged bodyguard is actually an expired passport belonging to a UNRWA […]
Claim: A video shows Iranian protesters, emboldened by US President-elect Donald Trump’s victory, setting fire to billboards of Ayatollah Khamenei in dissent. Fact: The viral video is from protests in 2022 after the death of Mahsa Amini at the hands of Iran’s morality police. On 22 May 2024, a user on X (formerly Twitter) posted […]
Claim: Pakistan Army Chief Gen Asim Munir got up from his seat to touch the knees of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman out of respect, according to a viral video Fact: The video is AI-generated and a real picture was likely animated to create the clip. AI and manipulation detection tools also indicated the […]
Claim: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been hospitalised in Tel Aviv after suffering from serious health issues. Fact: Netanyahu has not been ill nor hospitalised. On 18 November 2024, a user on X posted an image (archive) of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lying unconscious in the hospital with an oxygen mask on. The […]
Claim: A video shows thousands of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protesters marching towards Islamabad. Fact: The video actually shows supporters of Pope Francis welcoming him to East Timor. On 25 November 2024, a user on X (formerly Twitter) posted a video (archive) of a convoy of protesters heading towards Islamabad. The post is captioned, “BREAKING: #PakistanArmy […]
Claim: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defines the term ceasefire as an incident when someone “sees a fire”, which “could be a big fire or a small fire, a bonfire or even a candle flame”. Fact: The video is not authentic. A snippet from AOC’s real October 2023 livestream on Instagram has been doctored using altered audio. On […]
Claim: The World Boxing Organization (WBO) has “revoked” Imane Khelif’s gold medal after confirming that she “is male” and that the Olympic boxing athlete now “faces a lifetime ban”. Fact: The boxing body has made no such announcement, it confirmed in a statement. Furthermore, Imane Khelif is a cisgender woman. On 11 October 2024, Threads […]
Claim: The University of Oxford rejected Imran Khan’s application of candidacy in the Chancellor election following a request by the Government of Pakistan, citing his stance “against Israel and in favor of Palestine”, him being “a supporter of Taliban”, and his wish to implement Shariah law in the country as its reasons. Fact: Oxford University […]
Claim: Donald Trump shared a picture of himself shaking hands with Imran Khan on X and said, “We, Imran Khan and I, can bring peace to the world [so] come support us.” Fact: There’s no evidence for this claim. The X post in question was published by @Trump47thPOTUS, an account that has now been suspended. […]
Claim: A study shows that street vendors in Pakistan earn more than people with ‘regular jobs’. Fact: The claim is false as the study it refers to does not make any comparison between the income of street vendors and that of people with more regulated or formal employment. Between 21 and 24 October […]
Claim: A video shows Punjab’s Education Minister Rana Sikander Hayat assaulting a couple following the alleged incident of a student’s sexual assault at a private college in Lahore. Fact: The claim is false as the video does not show Rana Sikander Hayat. The individual in the video can be identified as Usman Mirza, who assaulted […]
Claim: Pictures show Jennifer Lopez wearing a sacred sword during a performance at Riyadh Season 2024. Fact: The pictures do not show Jennifer Lopez at Riyadh Season 2024. They show Palestinian-Chilean singer Elyanna performing at a concert in New York. On 15 and 16 November 2024, a number of users on Facebook, Instagram, […]
Claim: A video shows a Palestinian child trapped under rubble after Israel’s attack. Fact: The claim is misleading as the video is from Syria, not Palestine. It actually shows a child playing in her home, peeking through a hole in the wall and not stuck under the rubble. On 26 October 2024, an X (formerly […]
Claim: A video shows a woman yelling at Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz in Switzerland. Fact: The woman’s voice was superimposed onto the footage and the audio is not original. In fact, in the original video, we can hear the pedestrians praising the Sharifs. On 9 November 2024, a video of Nawaz Sharif […]
Claim: Video shows Pakistan Tehreek Insaf’s (PTI) protesters celebrating after they reached Islamabad. Fact: The video is from Libya and shows crowds of people gathered in a desert at a car rally. On 25 November, an X user posted a video (archive) allegedly showing PTI supporters celebrating after they reached Islamabad amid strict lockdown by […]