Latest news with #eTimesPakistan
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Footage of plane wreckage falsely linked to India-Pakistan crisis
"Funeral of Indian fighter jet held in Pakistan. Pakistani people are putting out the fire with sand," reads the Bengali-language caption of a Facebook video posted on May 7, 2025. The video shows the burning wreckage of a crashed fighter jet, with some individuals speaking in Punjabi trying to put out the flames by throwing sand and dirt on it. It was shared as India and Pakistan engaged in four days of intense fighting in the worst violence between the nuclear-armed neighbours in decades. More than 70 people on both sides were killed in the jet fighter, missile, drone and heavy artillery attacks which came to a halt on May 10 after the announcement of a ceasefire (archived link). The conflict was sparked by an attack on tourists by gunmen in Indian-administered Kashmir on April 22 that New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing -- a charge Pakistan denies. The video was also shared alongside similar posts on Facebook and Instagram. The footage, however, does not show a crashed Indian jet during the latest conflict. A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the falsely shared video led to the same footage posted on Instagram by online news outlet eTimes Pakistan on April 16 (archived link). "A Pakistan Air Force Jet has crashed near Vehari City," reads its caption, referring to a city in Pakistan's Punjab province. Pakistan news outlet Dawn used a still from the video in its report about the crash on April 16 (archived link). According to the Dawn report, the aircraft "was on a training flight but crashed due to some technical fault". AFP previously debunked similar posts that misrepresented visuals from the same crash here, and has debunked other false claims related to the latest India-Pakistan conflict here.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Yahoo
Footage from Pakistan plane crash falsely linked to conflict with India
"Indian civilians helping a Pakistani pilot," reads the Sinhala-language caption of a video compilation shared on Facebook on May 8, 2025. The compilation comprises clips of a plane engulfed in flames and people appearing to help injured pilots. It circulated a day after India launched deadly missile strikes on Pakistan, which sparked four days of intense fighting that killed at least 70 people (archived link). The violence came a fortnight after New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing an attack that killed 26 people in Pahalgam, in Indian-administered Kashmir (archived link). Pakistan denies any involvement in the attack. The clashes, the worst between the neighbours in decades, was brought to a halt by a ceasefire agreed on May 10. The compilation was also shared alongside similar posts elsewhere on Facebook. A combination of reverse image and keyword searches on Google, however, found the footage had previously circulated in news reports about a plane crash that took place weeks before the current conflict erupted. The clip of the plane in flames was mirrored from a clip used by news outlet eTimes Pakistan on Instagram on April 16 (archived link). "A Pakistan Air Force Jet has crashed near Vehari City," reads its caption. A similar image was used by Pakistan's Dawn newspaper in an April 16 report about a crash the previous day involving a Pakistan Air Force training aircraft near Ratta Tibba in the northwestern district of Vehari (archived link). "Both the pilots had a miraculous escape as they ejected themselves and remained unhurt," read the report, which said they were flown to an army hospital. The second clip in the compilation, showing a man in military fatigues being cared for by civilians, was taken from a longer video posted by Pakistan media outlet Daily Ausaf Gilgit Baltistan on its Facebook page on April 16 (archived link). This clip was also mirrored in the false posts. The clip showing the other pilot was previously published by Pakistan's CTN News on April 15 (archived link). "A fighter jet has crashed just now. Pilots are coming down with parachutes," says someone speaking in Urdu, which can be heard on the clip. "The smoke is rising from near my shop. It has fallen here in Ratta Tibba." The false posts used a mirrored version of the clip. AFP has debunked other misinformation about the India-Pakistan conflict here, here and here.
