Wasi Anjum Mirza

Fact Check • 21st September 2022

Video shows shooting in Ecuador, not Pakistan

A video has been viewed thousands of times in social media posts that claim it shows gunmen attacking a family in Pakistan's megacity Karachi. However, the video has been shared in a false context; it shows a shooting in Ecuador in May 2022. "Blind firing on a family at Redapple and Baloch Icecream in Gulistan-e-Johar. The father lost his life. No one is safe in Karachi," reads an Urdu-language tweet posted on September 10, 2022. The 20-second video, which has garnered more than 6,500 views, s

Fact Check • 15th September 2022

Photo shows child fleeing Myanmar in 2017, not Pakistan flood victim in 2022

Photo shows child fleeing Myanmar in 2017, not Pakistan flood victim in 2022 After devastating floods left nearly a third of Pakistan underwater, a photo of a tearful girl was widely shared in posts about the disaster. However, the photo actually shows a child fleeing violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state in 2017. "Floods in Pakistan have created havoc. Homeless, displaced, devastated," reads an Instagram post shared by Pakistani actress Neelam Muneer Khan on August 25. "People of Pakistan are

Fact Check • 8th September 2022

Old video shows family tragedy at waterfall in India, not Pakistan floods in 2022

Old video shows family tragedy at waterfall in India, not Pakistan floods in 2022 Following devastating monsoon floods that have put nearly a third of Pakistan under water, a video has been viewed tens of thousands of times in Twitter posts that claim it shows a family drowning in the country's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The video, however, has been shared in a false context. It shows an accident at a waterfall in India in 2011. The 30-second clip shows five people clinging to a ro

Fact Check • 23rd August 2022

This storm video was taken in Australia in 2020, not Pakistan in 2022

This storm video was taken in Australia in 2020, not Pakistan in 2022 A video has been watched tens of thousands of times in social media posts that claim it shows a cloudburst over a Pakistani city as monsoon rains wrought havoc on the country's Sindh province in August 2022. However, the video has been shared in a false context; it was actually filmed in Australia in February 2020. The 14-second video was posted on Twitter here on August 20, 2022, where it has been viewed more than 16,000 ti

Fact Check • 22nd August 2022

Video shows family reunion, not arrested Pakistan politician Shahbaz Gill hugging children

After Pakistani opposition politician Shahbaz Gill was arrested on sedition charges, a video was viewed tens of thousands of times in posts that claimed it showed him in a tearful embrace with his children. However, the video has been shared in a false context. The clip shows two children who were reunited with their father after they ran away from home. "Dr Shahbaz Gill with his children. The one who had mountain-like resolve broke down when suffering such a crime for his patriotism," reads an

Fact Check • 18th August 2022

Old photo shared in false posts about ex-Pakistan minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed 'hiding in hospital'

Old photo shared in false posts about ex-Pakistan minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed 'hiding in hospital' accused police of raiding his home and party office , Facebook and Twitter posts shared a photo purportedly showing him hiding from police in hospital. However, the photo was taken in June 2020 when Ahmed was treated for Covid-19. He has appeared in public in August 2022 after claims about him hiding circulated. "The one who sets parliament on fire and gives open threats to institutions, Sheikh

Fact Check • 11th August 2022

Old photos of helicopter wreckage do not show 'Balochistan crash in 2022'

Old photos of helicopter wreckage do not show 'Balochistan crash in 2022' After six Pakistan servicemen including a senior commander were killed in a helicopter crash on August 1, Facebook posts shared photos of wreckage that they claimed showed the aftermath of the disaster. However, the photos are old; one was taken after a deadly accident in Pakistan in December 2021 and the others were taken following separate crashes in Afghanistan in May and June 2011. “An army helicopter has crashed in

Fact Check • 22nd July 2022

This video has circulated since 2021 in reports of a fire at the Afghanistan-Iran border

This video has circulated since 2021 in reports of a fire at the Afghanistan-Iran border Social media users have shared a video they claim shows a fire that broke out at a Pakistani power plant in July 2022. However, the video -- viewed tens of thousands of times -- has been shared in a false context; it has circulated since 2021 in reports about a blaze at Afghanistan's largest trade crossing with Iran, which destroyed hundreds of oil and gas tankers and caused millions of dollars of damage.

Fact Check • 19th July 2022

Video shows storm over the US in 2018, not Pakistan in 2022

Video shows storm over the US in 2018, not Pakistan in 2022 After monsoon rains battered Pakistan in July 2022, social media posts shared a video they claimed shows a microburst over the South Asian nation's largest city Karachi. But the video -- viewed tens of thousands of times -- has been shared in a false context. It actually shows a microburst over the US state of Arizona in 2018. The 24-second clip was shared here on Facebook on July 11, 2022, where it has been viewed more than 60,000 ti

Fact Check • 18th July 2022

Yemeni boy's photo falsely shared with claim it shows 'child rescued after Afghanistan quake'

Yemeni boy's photo falsely shared with claim it shows 'child rescued after Afghanistan quake' A photo of a boy has been shared hundreds of times in multiple Pakistani social media posts that claim he was rescued from the rubble of a deadly earthquake that struck Afghanistan in June 2022. However, the photo has been shared in a false context; it has circulated online since 2015 in reports about the Yemen conflict. The photographer told AFP he took the image in Yemen in 2015, after Houthi rebels

Fact Check • 13th July 2022

Video shows dead livestock after torrential rains in Saudi Arabia in 2020 -- not Pakistan in 2022

Video shows dead livestock after torrential rains in Saudi Arabia in 2020 -- not Pakistan in 2022 A video has been viewed thousands of times in social media posts claiming it shows livestock that drowned in Pakistan after the South Asian nation was battered by monsoon rains in July 2022. However, the video has been shared in a false context; it has circulated since 2020 in reports about livestock killed in floods in northern Saudi Arabia. The 21-second clip was shared here on Facebook on July

Fact Check • 11th July 2022

Posts share old video of lodgings for hajj pilgrims as 'provided by Pakistan government in 2022'

Posts share old video of lodgings for hajj pilgrims as 'provided by Pakistan government in 2022' As thousands of Pakistani Muslims made the journey to Saudi Arabia for the annual hajj pilgrimage in July 2022, a video was viewed thousands of times in social media posts that claimed it shows pilgrims criticising the current Pakistan government for housing them in "terrible" conditions. However, the video has been shared in a misleading context. It has circulated since August 2019 in posts that cr

Fact Check • 1st July 2022

This video has circulated since 2021 in reports about Taliban after US Afghan exit

This video has circulated since 2021 in reports about Taliban after US Afghan exit A video of people prostrating has been viewed more than a thousand times in social media posts that claim it shows crowds mourning following an earthquake that struck eastern Afghanistan in June 2022. However, the claim is false; the video has circulated since September 2021 in reports about the Taliban celebrating after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. The claim was shared here on Facebook on June 23, 2022.

Fact Check • 28th June 2022

This photo shows quake-damaged road in Pakistan in 2019, not Afghanistan in 2022

This photo shows quake-damaged road in Pakistan in 2019, not Afghanistan in 2022 A photo of a damaged road has been shared thousands of times in multiple Facebook posts that claim it shows the aftermath of a powerful earthquake that struck Afghanistan in June 2022. However, the claim is false; the photo actually shows a road damaged by a major earthquake in Pakistan-administered Kashmir in September 2019. A photo showing people standing over a severely damaged road was posted on Facebook on Ju

Fact Check • 23rd June 2022

Photo of 2015 Charlie Hebdo protest doctored to add call for Nupur Sharma's arrest

Photo of 2015 Charlie Hebdo protest doctored to add call for Nupur Sharma's arrest An image has been shared over a thousand times by Pakistani social media users that claim it shows Muslims in Russia protesting over controversial remarks about the Prophet Mohammed by an official from India's Hindu nationalist ruling party. However, the picture has been doctored to include references to the official; the original shows a 2015 protest against French magazine Charlie Hebdo for publishing cartoons

Fact Check • 16th June 2022

Video shows birthday celebration in Yemen for Prophet Mohammed -- not protest in India

Video shows birthday celebration in Yemen for Prophet Mohammed -- not protest in India A video has been viewed thousands of times in Facebook posts that claim it shows millions of Muslims taking to the streets in India to protest over remarks made by a ruling party official that were seen as insulting to the Prophet Mohammed. However, the video actually shows a birthday celebration for the prophet held in Yemen in 2019, and its audio is from a Hezbollah leader's speech in 2012 that warned of "d

Fact Check • 9th June 2022

Posts misrepresent photo of ex-Pakistan PM Khan greeting Erdogan in Pakistan

Two photos have circulated online in social media posts that claim Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan personally greeted Pakistan's former premier Imran Khan at the airport when he visited Turkey, while the current Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was greeted by the Turkish defence minister. The posts -- shared hundreds of times -- are misleading. While the photo of Sharif has been shared in the correct context, the photo of Khan shows him greeting Erdogan in Pakistan, not Turkey, in

Fact Check • 7th June 2022

Old video of weeping Pakistan minister doctored to add 'thief' chant

Old video of weeping Pakistan minister doctored to add 'thief' chant A video viewed millions of times in Facebook and TikTok posts appears to show Pakistan's Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb weeping while a crowd chants "thief" and "traitor" at her. The posts claim the footage was taken at a rally in May 2022 by Aurangzeb's Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) party. However, the video has been doctored to add the chants. The original clip was filmed in 2018 and shows Aurangzeb's reactio

Fact Check • 2nd June 2022

Footage has circulated since 2021 in posts about a protest by Pakistani civil servants

Footage has circulated since 2021 in posts about a protest by Pakistani civil servants Footage has been viewed tens of thousands of times in social media posts that claim it shows Pakistan's capital Islamabad blanketed in tear gas in May 2022. The posts spread online after clashes between police and supporters of the country's ousted prime minister Imran Khan in the capital and other cities. However, the footage has been shared in a false context. It has circulated online since at least Februar

Fact Check • 27th May 2022

These photos show wildfires in the United States and Australia, not Pakistan

These photos show wildfires in the United States and Australia, not Pakistan Four images have been shared hundreds of times in social media posts that claim they show a raging forest fire in Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province in May 2022. Some of the posts were shared by Pakistani politicians and journalists. However, the pictures have been shared in a false context. They actually show wildfires in the United States and a bushfire in Australia. Three images of burning trees were post