Claim: The Government of Punjab announced that all educational institutions will remain closed from 25 January to 28 January 2024. Fact: Educational institutions are to remain open since no formal government notification was issued. On 24 January 2024, news started to spread that all educational institutions in Punjab have been recommended to close from 25 […]
Claim: The Prime Minister’s Youth Programme (PMYP) has launched a programme in collaboration with the German Academic Exchange Service for Pakistani students to get the chance to study at universities in Germany on scholarship. Fact: The DAAD’s Islamabad office has said they do not “have any ongoing collaboration linked to the PMY Programme” at present. […]
Claim: A mountain of gold has been found in the Euphrates River. Fact: A mountain of gold has not been found in the Euphrates River. On 18 April 2023, a Twitter user uploaded an image showing a site of ruins with the caption: The Prophet PBUH said, “The Hour will not come to pass before […]
Claim: A mosque appeared in an Algerian desert after a sandstorm. Fact: The pictures represent two separate structures present in El Oued, Algeria, suspected to be a village. On 17 April 2023, a Twitter account (@Arabbeau) posted two pictures with the caption, “A mosque appeared in the desert after a sandstorm – Algeria.” The pictures […]
Claim: Peshawar’s Islamia College University lecturer Dr Bashir Ahmad was killed over a blasphemy allegation. Fact: The claim is false, as confirmed by Islamia College University’s provost and a journalist from Peshawar. On 19 February 2023, Twitter account @DayWithNews posted a tweet (archive) claiming that Dr Bashir Ahmad, a lecturer at the Department of English […]
Claim: A social media video shows Baloch students chanting and demanding freedom from Pakistan. Fact: The claim is false. The video is from the University of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where students protested against the ban on women’s education in Afghanistan. On 10 January 2023, a Twitter account posted a video with the caption, “We demand […]
Claim: 20 Pakistani universities have been ranked amongst the world’s top 500 universities Fact: The ranking in question is related to how sustainable a university is and is not indicative of a university’s standard of education Several media outlets are claiming that 20 Pakistani universities have been included in a list of the top 500 […]
Claim: All Confucius Institutes in Pakistan have been shut down. Confucius Institutes are Chinese language and culture centers set up through partnerships between universities in Pakistan and the Chinese International Education Foundation. Fact: Confucius Institutes in Pakistan remain operational. Fact or Fiction? In a 15 May 2022 tweet, TV personality Orya Maqbool Jan stated the […]
Claim: A misleading tweet claimed that “75% Pakistanis have never read a book outside their syllabus,” citing Gallup Pakistan, a survey research and consultancy firm affiliated with Gallup International, as an official source. Fact: Gallup Pakistan did not release any survey results indicating that 75% of Pakistanis have never read a book outside their class […]
Claim: A top education officer has issued a ban on co-education in Chakwal schools. Fact: The claim is misleading. The Deputy District Education Officer (M-EE) for Chakwal did issue a notification on the “prohibition of co-education in government schools at elementary level” in Chakwal but this notification was cancelled by the DC Office Chakwal shortly […]