Claim: An image on social media shows a protest against rising terrorism in Lakki Marwat in April 2023. Fact: The claim is misleading. The image is from Swat and not the Lakki Marwat area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). On 29 April 2023, Pakistani journalist Imran Riaz Khan posted an image on Twitter with the Urdu […]
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: Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, posted a tweet expressing his condolences to the families of the victims of a terrorist attack on the Counter Terrorism Department in Swat. Fact: The DPO and DIG Malakand believe this was a result of mishandling of ammunition rather than. On 25 April 2023, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif […]
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: An image on social media shows rescue workers standing in front of a collapsed building after a sizable earthquake hit several countries, including Pakistan, on 21 March 2023. Fact: The claim is, in fact, false as the picture is from a 2020 earthquake in Turkey. On Tuesday evening, a powerful 6.5 magnitude earthquake jolted […]
Claim: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won the recent by-election in Swat by defeating a “13-party coalition of PDM [Pakistan Democratic Movement] single handedly”. Fact: There were four candidates in the Swat by-election, including one each from the PTI, the Awami National Party (ANP), and the Tehreek-e-Inqelab Political Movement (TiPM), as well as an independent. The […]