Claim: A rally was held in China in support of Imran Khan.
Fact: The absence of credible news reports, along withl inconsistencies in the video, suggest that it is not from China and neither does it show a political rally. In fact, it likely shows a Christmas parade in Germany.
A video (archive) shared on Facebook shows people dressed in green, red, and white, walking in a procession. The video contains the text:
“چائنا میں خان کا احتجاج ہورہا ہے آپ سب کی دعاؤں سے عمران خان جلد ریہا ہوگا”
[Translation: Khan’s protest is happening in China. With all of your prayers, Imran Khan will be released soon.]
Protests in favour of Imran Khan
Since former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s removal from office via a no-confidence vote in April 2022, PTI supporters have intermittently protested across Pakistan and abroad, including in the UK. On the eve of Khan’s removal, demonstrations took place outside Nawaz Sharif’s residence in London, where PTI and PML-N supporters have since clashed multiple times.
On the day of Khan’s arrest on corruption charges in May 2023, large-scale protests erupted in major cities such as Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, and Peshawar, Al Jazeera reported.
In October 2024, hundreds of PTI activists, including senior leaders, gathered at multiple locations in Islamabad despite heavy police blockades, road closures, and Section 144 restrictions. Demonstrators managed to converge at various sites, including at D-Chowk which is near the high-security Red Zone. Police arrested over 100 PTI members as violent clashes broke out, involving stone-pelting and tear gas exchange, according to several reports. However, the exact number of arrests remains disputed.
On 26 November 2024, thousands of PTI protesters once again gathered in Islamabad after a convoy, led by Khan’s wife, broke through several lines of security to reach the city’s Red Zone. In response to the protest, security forces launched a midnight raid on PTI supporters.
Fact or Fiction?
The claim appeared suspicious to us as protest demonstrations are generally not allowed in China. The Chinese government has strict laws over public demonstrations, political dissent, and gatherings. Due to heavy surveillance, censorship, and strict enforcement by authorities, protests are rare. Any unauthorised protest is typically met with swift action, including arrests and suppression.
Given this context, we first searched for news reports from credible outlets but found no evidence of a protest in support of Imran Khan taking place in China.
Additionally, several features in the video suggested that it was not filmed in China at all. There are no Chinese individuals visible in the footage. Instead, the crowd appears to be predominantly Caucasian. Most notably, some individuals in the viral video were seen wearing jackets with the text “Ordnungsamt”, which is German for Public Order Office or Regulatory Office. This indicated that the video was likely filmed in Germany, not China.
Since Ordnungsamt officials normally oversee safety and regulations at a public event or parade, we suspect that the video was likely filmed at one such instance in Germany.
While some individuals in the video are dressed in red, green, and white—colours typically associated with PTI’s flag—there are no visible signs, banners, or clothing that explicitly mention PTI or Imran Khan, or any signage with political affiliations which further suggests this was not a protest in his support or even a political protest.
When Soch Fact Check reverse-searched keyframes of the viral video, we could not locate the exact footage. However, the search did yield images from Christmas parades around the world, including Germany, indicating that the video was likely filmed during a Christmas parade. Some of those images can be viewed here, here, and here.
While we were unable to trace the original video, some of its features and the absence of news reports strongly indicates that no protest in support of Imran Khan took place in China.
Virality
The claim was shared here (archive) on Facebook.
On TikTok, it was shared here.
Conclusion: The absence of credible news reports, and the presence of German regulatory officers in the video suggests that no protests were held in China in support of Imran Khan. In fact, the video is likely from a Christmas parade in Germany, and not a political demonstration.
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Background image in cover photo: PTIOfficial
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