Current Final

Tag: Fact Check

  • Sarfraz Bugti refuses to provide details of 14 bombing attacks by Afghans

    Sarfraz Bugti refuses to provide details of 14 bombing attacks by Afghans

    Caretaker government officials are not providing any information to support their claim that Afghan nationals were involved in 14 out of 24 suicide bombing attacks in Pakistan in 2023, Geo has reported.

    Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti disclosed on October 3 that from January until October, Pakistan has witnessed 24 suicide bombing attacks.

    “Of those 24 bombings, 14 have been carried out by Afghan nationals,” he added. “Afghan people attacked us. This includes the Peshawar mosque bombings and the one in Qilla Saifullah and Hangu, amongst others.”

    Sarfraz Bugti also claimed that the government has all the essential proof.

    “Afghan nationals are involved in the attacks on us. We have evidence. We have evidence of everything,” he stated.

    Sarfraz Bugti repeated his claim in multiple interviews with both international and Pakistani news channels.

    The interim government used these metrics to order all undocumented immigrants, as well as 1.73 million Afghan nationals, to leave the country or face deportation.

    Earlier last week, Sarfraz Bugti told Dawn TV that almost 400,000 Afghans have left Pakistan so far.

    Last month, Geo Fact Check reached out to the interior minister and asked for evidence of the involvement of Afghan nationals in suicide bombing attacks, but the interior minister hasn’t responded back until now.

  • Viral video about Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib is actually from four kilometres away

    Viral video about Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib is actually from four kilometres away

     A video going viral on the other side of the border shows a group dancing at what seems to be an event. The video was spread in India with claims that liquor and meat were served at the event in the Gurdwara Sahib. It is to be noted that meat and alcohol are strictly prohibited in Sikhism and their use is considered against the Sikh protocol. Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib is the second most holiest place for Sikhs around the world for it is believed that Guru Nanak breathed his last here.

    General Secretary, Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee, Jagdip Singh Kahlon called it “unacceptable”. A number of publications also posted the video quoting statements from BJP leaders like Manjinder Singh Sirsa condemning the incident.

    Reputable Journalist Shiraz Hassan debunked the news as “totally false news”. He goes on to elaborate, “The event venue was at least 4KM away from Srri Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara – the whole area is known as Kartapur and the event was organized in Doda village!”

  • Fact-check: Is Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen dead or alive?

    Fact-check: Is Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen dead or alive?

    News about veteran Indian economist and Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen’s death started circulating on social media today.

    A social media post about Sen’s death that the Indian media was quoting was from Claudia Goldin’s X (formerly Twitter) account, which turned out to be a fake account.

    Claudia Goldin is an American economic historian and has been announced as the winner of the Nobel Prize Economics for this year.

    Sen’s daughter took to X and tweeted:

    “Friends, thanks for your concern but it’s fake news: Baba is totally fine. We just spent a wonderful week together w/ family in Cambridge—his hug as strong as always last night when we said bye! He is teaching 2 courses a week at Harvard, working on his gender book—busy as ever!”

    Seema Chishti, Editor The Wire, corrected the misinformation, clarifying that Sen is very much alive.

    Other accounts also corrected the misinformation being spread about Sen’s death.

  • Journalist corrects Indian media spreading misinformation about Pakistan

    Journalist corrects Indian media spreading misinformation about Pakistan

    Naimat Khan, a journalist working with Arab News, pointed out false news being widely circulated by Indian media.

    Indian news platforms have been reporting that Maulana Qaiser Farooq has been shot and killed in a target attack in Karachi, alleging that he was one of the prominent leaders of Lashkar-e-Taiba and was a close associate of Hafiz Saeed.

    Khan, however, fact checked and corrected the outlets by stating that Maulana Qaiser Farooq, killed by unknown assailants in Karachi, was associated with Gulshan-e-Umar, a branch of Binori Town, a top Deobandi seminary in Karachi. He pointed out that this institution has no connection with Hafiz Saeed.

  • ‘This is no boarding house’; German Ambassador fact checks Indian ad

    ‘This is no boarding house’; German Ambassador fact checks Indian ad

    Dr Philipp Ackermann, German Ambassador to India and Bhutan, was forced to fact check an advertisement printed in an Indian newspaper on X (formerly Twitter).

    The ad was of a boarding school fair, complete with a picture of an impressive building. And while India does have numerous buildings built on European architecture styles, the one in the ad, however, was actually Schloss Bellevue — residence for the German Federal President’s principal official in Berlin.

    Ambassador Philipp factually corrected the advertiser as well as the newspaper with humour, directing the post to “Dear Indian parents” stating, “this building is no boarding school! It is the seat of the German President in Berlin. Our Rashtrapati Bhavan as it were.”

    Rashtrapati Bhavan is the official residence of the President of India in New Delhi.

    “There are good boarding schools also in Germany – but here, no child will be admitted”, he said, jokingly.

    Dear Indian parents – I found this in today’s newspaper. But this building is no boarding school! It is the seat of the German President in Berlin. Our Rashtrapati Bhavan as it were. There are good boarding schools also in Germany – but here, no child will be admitted

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  • Venkatesh Prasad deletes viral tweet about Jay Shah, abuses Muslim journalist for sharing screenshot

    Former Indian cricketer Venkatesh Prasad on Saturday tweeted what many social media users believe was a cryptic tweet targeting Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President Jay Shah, who is also secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

    “It takes one corrupt, arrogant guy to take away the hard work of an organisation that is generally non-corrupt and get a stamp of corruption on the whole leadership, not just on a micro level but at a large level.”

    Prasad’s tweet made many X (former Twitter) users speculate if the former cricketer had targeted BCCI and Jay Shah, son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah. However, Prasad soon deleted his tweet.

    Indian journalist and fact-checker Mohammed Zubair posted a screenshot of the tweet deleted by Prasad.

    AltNews co-founder Zubair was not the only one who posted a screenshot of Prasad’s deleted tweet. Many news outlets did a story on it as well. However, Prasad chose to target and abuse Zubair in a racist and bigoted tweet.

    Prasad quote-tweeted Zubair and wrote: “Haha.. Says a serial hate- monger, who has put so many lives in danger for his agenda. You disguising as a fact-checker is like Terrorists talking about peace. Now post that you need money to survive and ask for donation for your website, no shame in living off by fooling people.”

    In response, Zubair said that he hopes Prasad will be forgiven for his tweet on BCCI by his “political masters for compensating by abusing and comparing” him to “terrorists”.

    One user pointed out that Venkatesh Prasad’s manager is Amritanshu Gupta, a known right-wing BJP supporter, which is why Prasad’s language is of right-wing trolls.

    Many X users called out the former Indian cricketer for his bigoted and hateful tweet against a Muslim journalist in India.

    https://twitter.com/shirinkhan0/status/1700745905811452255?s=46&t=NeHT3ePJG7zY8CuA5h6boA
    https://twitter.com/Earthyy_Mermaid/status/1700585758355325151

    Prasad posted a new version of his deleted tweet a day later.

  • Fact check: Islamabad Police confirm elderly protester is safe, debunking suicide rumours

    Fact check: Islamabad Police confirm elderly protester is safe, debunking suicide rumours

    In the midst of ongoing nationwide protests against escalating electricity bills, rumours of a tragic incident have emerged, capturing the attention of social media users and news outlets alike. A post that quickly gained traction depicted an elderly man, purportedly driven to despair by soaring electricity prices, who tragically took his own life by jumping off a bridge in Rawalpindi.

    The accompanying image showed the man lying on the road, an electricity bill resting on his chest. However, an investigation by the Islamabad Police has since confirmed that these claims are false.

    The viral post elicited an outpouring of sympathy and concern from prominent social media figures and digital news platforms, who shared the purported tragedy with deep sadness. However, as the post gained momentum, it also caught the attention of the Islamabad Police. Responding to the viral news, the authorities swiftly addressed the situation, clarifying that the incident as portrayed never occurred.

    In an official statement, the Islamabad Police stated, “The case of an elderly citizen jumping from a bridge has been circulating on social media. However, there is no truth to this news. While the elderly citizen did fall during the protest, he later safely returned home. Videos of this incident went viral among citizens on social media platforms. It’s important for citizens to refrain from disseminating such false information and instead report any suspicious activities by calling 15.”

    This incident serves as a reminder of the critical role that accurate information plays in shaping public perception and understanding of events. As protests continue to unfold across Pakistan, staying vigilant against the spread of unverified news is paramount to upholding the integrity of the ongoing discourse.

    Read more: Taxes in your electricity bill: What Pakistanis are paying and what for?

    It is crucial for both individuals and media outlets to exercise responsible reporting, ensuring that the facts are presented accurately and without distortion.

  • Fawad Chaudhry’s 2019 video misrepresented by Indian media as response to Chandrayaan-3

    Fawad Chaudhry’s 2019 video misrepresented by Indian media as response to Chandrayaan-3

    A video of former information minister, Fawad Chaudhry, has been circulating on Indian media, purportedly showing him responding to India’s Chandrayaan-3 moon mission. In the video, Fawad is heard saying that Pakistan did not feel the need to work hard and send a moon mission, which has led to ridicule from Indian social media users.

    However, it is important to clarify the context of this video. The video is dated back to May 26, 2019, during which Fawad Chaudhry served as the Minister of Science and Technology in Pakistan. He was discussing disputes over sighting the Ramzan and Eid moons and announcing the release of a 5-year lunar calendar with the assistance of the science ministry. His statement was related to the moon sighting for the Islamic festivals and was not a direct response to India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission.

    During the TV show in May 2019, Chaudhry was referring to the Ministry of Science and Technology’s viewpoint on the sighting of the Eid moon. He stated, “We have a point of view in the Ministry of Science and Technology. Wherever the moon is, it is visible. Its location is known. It is known when the moon birth is taking place. Where it will be at what altitude, it is known exactly.” This statement had no connection to Chandrayaan-3, as it predates the mission by more than 4 years.

    Unfortunately, some Indian media outlets published this old video without proper research and presented it as a recent interview related to the Chandrayaan-3 mission. This led to misinterpretation and ridicule of Fawad Chaudhry on Indian social media platforms.

    In summary, the viral video of Fawad Chaudhry is not related to India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission, but rather pertains to moon sighting for Islamic festivals and dates back to May 2019. The claims of his recent mocking of the Chandrayaan-3 mission are not accurate and should be treated with caution to avoid misrepresentation.

  • Factcheck: Is Afghan singer Hasiba Noori dead?

    Factcheck: Is Afghan singer Hasiba Noori dead?

    Claim: Afghan singer Hasiba Noori had been killed in Peshawar

    On Monday, social media was ablaze with news that Afghan singer Hasiba Noori had passed away in Pakistan under mysterious circumstances, having taken refuge here after the takeover of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Conflicting news reports emerged on social media where accounts said she had passed away in Peshawar, while others said that she had been killed in Quetta.

    A journalist, Izharullah, shut down rumors of Noori’s death in Peshawar, saying that there was no such information available with the police.

    However it was senior journalist Iftikhar Firdous who took to his Twitter account to say that the news was fake, and the Afghani singer is alive and well in Quetta.

    The Current spoke with Firdous on how he reached out to the Afghan singer, and he revealed that he had managed to get in touch with Noori after contacting at least 300 people for 12 hours. Firdous had a video call with Noori, which confirmed that his source was reliable and the news that she died was fake.

    On the viral picture of Noori’s alleged corpse lying in a hospital bed, Firdous revealed that it was taken after a surgery in Karachi, the singer had clarified.

    Currently, Noori is in Quetta, and has informed Firdous that she will post a video to squash these rumors.

    The claim is false.

    The singer also shared a video on her TikTok account to silence the rumors.

  • Fact Check: Were liquor bottles recovered from Saad Rizvi’s car?

    Fact Check: Were liquor bottles recovered from Saad Rizvi’s car?

    Claim: Bottles of liquor were recovered from the car of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) Chief Saad Rizvi.

    A screenshot of 24 News HD has been circulating online, stating that bottles of liquor were recovered from Saad Rizvi’s car.

    It has been clarified by 24 News that no such information was shared by the channel and the screen shot is fake. “The news about Saad Rizvi is based on lies… False propaganda against 24 News,” clarified the channel.


    Many on Twitter have also shared the fabricated screenshot, wondering if the news is true, while some used a sarcastic tone. One person tweeted, “According to a news report, 5 bottles of alcohol were stolen from Saad Rizvi’s car #ChalochaloLahoreChalo.”

    On the other hand, some termed it as ‘another horrendous political’ hoax. “Another horrendous politics is being played by the ones who are in power in #Pakistan Whatsoever you do, remember one thing! We don’t believe you. I am not a supporter of #SaadRizvi, but this can’t be truth,” tweeted another.

    Verdict: 24 News screenshot being randomly shared on social media with claims of alcohol recovered from TLP chief Saad Rizvi’s car is fabricated. No such incident took place.