Wasi Anjum Mirza

News Verification

A collection of debunks and investigations into claims circulating online.

Filters & Sorting
AFP Fact Check •

This is an old image showing Pakistan's national elections in 2018, not the recent poll in Kashmir

This is an old image showing Pakistan's national elections in 2018, not the recent poll in Kashmir Facebook and Twitter posts in Pakistan purport to show a photo of supporters of an opposition party travelling in a police vehicle during recent provincial elections in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. The claim is misleading: the image is from 2018 and shows party supporters in the capital Islamabad during national elections that year.
AFP Fact Check •

Doctored image of Pakistan opposition party's campaign poster misleads on social media

Doctored image of Pakistan opposition party's campaign poster misleads on social media An image shared multiple times on Facebook and Twitter purports to show a Pakistan opposition party will put forward a man recently arrested for harassment to contest a seat in Pakistan's National Assembly in the capital Islamabad. The claim is misleading: the image has been doctored to add the man's face in one of the opposition party's campaign posters from 2018.
AFP Fact Check •

Video of Pakistan PM's parliament speech shared with misleading budget claim

A video has been viewed more than one million times in multiple social media posts that claim it shows Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan delivering a speech to parliament in June 2021 after his government announced its budget for the next fiscal year. But the video has been shared in a misleading context: it actually shows Khan speaking to parliament in March 2021 after winning a vote of confidence in the lower house.
AFP Fact Check •

Pakistan health minister’s comments on vaccination misrepresented in edited video

A video has been shared in multiple posts on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube that purport to show Pakistan health minister saying she will not get vaccinated for Covid-19 because of the possible side effects. The claim is false: the video has been edited to misrepresent her comments at a press conference. In the original footage, she described the jab’s possible side effects and outlined which groups would receive it first.
AFP Fact Check •

Fabricated image circulates in posts about attacked Pakistan journalist

After a Pakistani journalist was attacked by a group of men at his home, posts circulating online purported to show him tweeting thanks to well-wishers for bringing him fertility medicine. The tweet, however, has been doctored: the original post shows the journalist thanking well-wishers for bringing him painkillers. The image was posted here on Twitter on May 31, 2021. "Shame on you Asad Toor,” reads the post’s caption. The image shows a screenshot of a tweet from Pakistani journalist Asad A
AFP Fact Check •

Images of Pakistani journalist with opposition party chairman doctored to include envelope

Images of Pakistani journalist with opposition party chairman doctored to include envelope A photo collage has been shared in multiple Facebook and Twitter posts in May 2021 alongside a claim it shows a Pakistani journalist accepting a bribe from the chairman of a Pakistani opposition party. But the image has been altered to include an envelope, purportedly filled with cash.
AFP Fact Check •

Photos show journalists showing support for Palestinian reporter shot in eye in 2019

Photos show journalists showing support for Palestinian reporter shot in eye in 2019 Several images have been shared thousand times in multiple posts on Facebook and Twitter that claim they show Malaysian television hosts wearing eye patches to show solidarity with a Palestinian journalist shot in the eye in 2021. The claim is misleading: the image shows Malaysian television journalists showing support for a Palestinian reporter who was injured in 2019.
AFP Fact Check •

This photo was taken in Chile in 2016

This photo was taken in Chile in 2016 As Israel-Palestinian tensions escalated into deadly violence, a photo surfaced in Facebook, Twitter and Instagram posts that claimed it showed an Israeli soldier kneeling on a Palestinian child’s neck. The claim is false: the photo shows a police officer in Valparaíso, Chile in 2016. AFP has previously fact checked the same picture, which circulated during protests following the death of George Floyd.
Fact Check •

This image shows a US mosque where a fire broke out in 2019

This image shows a US mosque where a fire broke out in 2019 A photo has been shared in multiple Facebook and Twitter posts that claim it shows a mosque set on fire by “extremists” in France. The claim is false: the image shows a mosque in the US state of Connecticut where a fire broke out in 2019. The image was posted here on Facebook on April 12, 2021 in a group with more than 16,000 members. "In France, extremists set fire to two mosques, Muslim lives in danger. See the picture. And our lea
AFP Fact Check •

Radical Pakistan party leader misleadingly claims praying at Muslim shrine can cure Covid-19

A video has been viewed tens of thousands of times in multiple social media posts that shows the leader of a Pakistan extremist party encouraging people to pray at a notable Muslim shrine in the city of Lahore so they can be “healed” from Covid-19. The claim is misleading: there is no credible evidence that prayer can cure Covid-19. International health experts have previously warned against mass gatherings over fears they could exacerbate the spread of Covid-19. The video was posted here on Ma
AFP Fact Check •

This is a model of Prophet Mohammed’s tomb from a museum in Saudi Arabia

This is a model of Prophet Mohammed’s tomb from a museum in Saudi Arabia A photo has been shared thousands of times on Facebook alongside a claim it shows the tomb of the Prophet Mohammed. The claim is false: the image shows a model of the tomb from the Dar Al-Madinah Museum in Medina, Saudi Arabia. The photo was posted here on April 8, 2021 by a Facebook page with more than 30,000 followers. "Praise Allah, praise Allah. Recite Durood [blessing on Prophet Mohammed] and share”, reads part of t
AFP Fact Check •

Pakistani social media users share debunked coronavirus myths

A video has been shared tens of thousands of times by Pakistani Facebook users that claims Italian doctors discovered Covid-19 is caused by a bacteria. The video goes on to claim the bacteria is somehow spread through the "poisonous waves of 5G", causing an infection that is curable by taking paracetamol or aspirin. These claims are false, according to international health experts. Italy’s health ministry previously told AFP the claims were a “hoax" after they circulated online in the Philippine
AFP Fact Check •

This image has been shared since February 2021 in connection to another protest in Pakistan

An image has been shared hundreds of times on Facebook and Twitter posts, along with a claim that it shows tear gas shells used against protesters marching for justice after the deaths of four teenagers in the Pakistani town of Janikhel in March 2021. The claim is false; the image emerged online the month before the marches, in posts about government workers protesting for higher wages.
AFP Fact Check •

The image has been doctored from a photo showing a black flag

The image has been doctored from a photo showing a black flag A photo has surfaced on Facebook and Twitter in posts claiming it shows members of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a group advocating for the rights of the Pashtun ethnic group in Pakistan, waving the Indian flag at a protest in March 2021. The claim is false; the image has been doctored to include the Indian flag. The original photo shows a black flag which the PTM claims is a symbol of the movement’s struggles.
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