Topic

China

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False

Claim: China’s ultra high-speed maglev train is “coming soon” to Pakistan and will reduce the travelling time between Islamabad and Karachi to 1.5 hours. Fact: There are no reports in any reputable media outlet about the maglev being launched in Pakistan. The T-Flight train is still in the development and testing phase and has not […]

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False

Claim: Two images show Chinese military tanks entering India. Fact: The first image shows Russian military personnel conducting adaptive training for a joint military drill with Chinese forces in August 2021, while the second image shows the Chinese military disengaging from the India-China border in Ladakh in February 2021. Images of military tanks entering India […]

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False

Claim: A man in Faisalabad took his clothes off to protest the increasing prices of electricity across the country. Fact: The photos are from 2017. News reports from that time did not link the man’s action to rising electricity prices. On 5 July 2024, Dr Shahbaz Gill — an aide to former prime minister and […]

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False

Claim: Photos show the moment Chinese President Xi Jinping suffered a stroke. Fact: There are no verifiable reports that President Xi suffered a stroke during the Chinese Communist Party’s third plenary session. Two of the accompanying photos are from March 2024; one of them shows his reaction after drinking from a cup and the second […]

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False

Claim: A video shows Dubai authorities destroying a temple — likely the BAPS Hindu Mandir — after heavy rains lashed the UAE in April 2024 over concerns that the place of worship led to the catastrophe. Fact: The viral clip does not show a temple in the UAE being destroyed; in fact, the video predates […]

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Misleading

Claim: An image on X shows China’s recent military drills near Taiwan. Fact: The photograph is by Reuters’ photographer Carlos Garcia Rawlins, and it shows Taiwan’s navy conducting a drill as a display of power in January 2024. On 24 May 2024, X user @Osint613 posted (archived) posted, “…the drills with China surrounding Taiwan are […]

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Claim: A video shows former prime minister and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif receiving a grand welcome on his recent “unofficial” visit to China.  Fact: Although Sharif went on a trip to China in April, the video is from his trip to Beijing in July 2013, when he held the premier’s office. Fact or Fiction? On […]

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  Claim: Pakistan is in the final stages of signing a billion-dollar-plus defence sale to a Middle Eastern country. Fact: The claim is false. Unlike other deals with Myanmar, Nigeria and Argentina in the past, there is no reported and verified news that a deal has been initiated, and no Middle Eastern stakeholders have formally […]

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Claim: Video clips uploaded on Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok show raining worms in China. Fact:  The videos actually show catkins and not worms. Catkins are a cylindrical flower from poplar trees which appears to be wriggling in the rain, giving the appearance of worms. From 11 March 2023, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok were flooded with […]

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Claim: The tallest skyscraper in China -fourth tallest building in the world- caught fire, leaving six hundred people dead. It was the biggest fire since 9/11. An additional claim in social media posts argues that the fire was an American conspiracy plan. Fact: No casualties from the incident were reported. Furthermore, the building is not […]

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Claim: Pakistan is a top destination for countries to dump their waste, with most countries opting to dispose of their waste in Pakistan.  Fact: According to publicly available information, Pakistan’s relative share in the import of global waste is small. The misinformation appears connected to reports that 40 No Objection Certificates (“NOCs”) were issued to […]

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Claim: All Confucius Institutes in Pakistan have been shut down. Confucius Institutes are Chinese language and culture centers set up through partnerships between universities in Pakistan and the Chinese International Education Foundation. Fact: Confucius Institutes in Pakistan remain operational. Fact or Fiction? In a 15 May 2022 tweet, TV personality Orya Maqbool Jan stated the […]

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