Claim: Journalist Shaheen Sehbai shared a video claiming it shows the recent brutality of law enforcement agencies against civilian protesters. Fact: Journalist Shaheen Sehbai shared a clip taken during a 2009 Swat operation, where Pakistani soldiers are seen torturing and beating Taliban suspects in the original 10-minute-long video. On 19 May 2023, Shaheen Sehbai shared […]
Claim: An image shows PTI protesters standing atop and conquering the Bala Hisar Fort, which houses the FC headquarters in Peshawar, amid demonstrations against the arrest of Imran Khan. Fact: The image actually shows civilian employees of Bala Hisar Fort watching the protest on the main GT Road, according to the journalist who took the […]
Claim: A social media post suggests that Geo News reported, “No one knows General Asim Munir better than me, he is a human being, Imran Khan.” Fact: The post doing the rounds on social media is doctored. Geo News never reported or shared any such story. Fact or Fiction? On 9 April 2023, Twitter user […]
Claim: According to a survey conducted by Gallup Pakistan, 90% of Pakistanis believe that respecting the army is an important part of being a true Pakistani. Fact: The survey in question had less than 1,800 respondents. Furthermore, it was conducted in 2021. A Twitter account named DG ISPR Urdu tweeted a graphic stating that 90% […]
Claim: A photo shows the Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence of Pakistan (DG ISI) Nadeem Anjum attending the funeral of former Pakistani president and military dictator General Pervez Musharraf. Fact: The photo is actually from January 2023, when the DG ISI attended the funeral prayers of two martyred officers of the Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department. Fact or […]
Claim: Transparency International has ranked Pakistan’s army as being the most corrupt institution in the country Fact: Transparency International released a survey ranking Pakistan’s police force as being perceived to be the most corrupt institution in the country. The army was not included in the survey. A graphic posted on social media claims that Pakistan’s […]
Claim: An Express News bulletin quoting a purported FBR notification claimed the federal government exempted all taxes on the import of bulletproof vehicles for high-ranking military generals. Fact: According to the FBR, no such notification has been formally issued yet, although the tax exemption is indeed under the Prime Minister’s consideration. Since the policy hasn’t […]
Claim: Social media users, especially those aligned with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), allege that former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s aide, Shahbaz Gill, and his driver were beaten by police while being arrested in Islamabad on 9 August 2020. Fact: CCTV footage of the arrest shows Shahbaz Gill was shifted to another vehicle peacefully and not tortured; […]
Claim: Caryn E Gifford, a level 2 policy advisor to American diplomat David Blome, posted a tweet confirming that a US tactical drone accidentally hit a Pakistan Army helicopter in Balochistan’s Lasbela, resulting in multiple fatalities. Fact: The US embassy has not issued any statement regarding the recent Pakistan Army helicopter accident in Lasbela, Balochistan. […]
Claim: Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif has publicly endorsed a “soft intervention” in the country by the Pakistan Army and has said that if a soft intervention can lead to any sort of benefit to the country, then he is ready to accept it. Fact: Capital TV spread a false headline claiming that Prime […]
Claim: A video doing the rounds on social media depicts Pakistani soldiers fighting in Siachen. Fact: The video is not of Pakistani soldiers fighting in Siachen. The caption shared alongside this video on Facebook states, “How Pakistan army fights enemy in Siachen,” implying that the characters in the video are members of the Pakistan armed […]
Claim: Pakistani authorities hunted and killed a werewolf in Balochistan. However, some social media posts claim the mythical creature was found in Punjab’s Sialkot and Kashmir. Fact: Pakistani authorities did not kill a werewolf. The images being shared on social media feature an animatronic sculpture created by SFX artist Joseph-Rob Cobasky. [Content warning: Pictures in […]