Claim: Saudi Arabia banned Pakistani women and children from performing Hajj in 2025. Fact: Saudi Arabia issued specific guidelines for pilgrims heading for Hajj in 2025. People with advanced kidney or heart failure, chronic lung diseases, advanced liver cirrhosis, severe neurological and psychological conditions, and active infectious diseases, as well as cancer patients, elderly individuals […]
Claim: A video shows a fake Kaaba in Tehran, Iran, where people are forced to perform Hajj. Fact: The claim is misleading because the 2023 video shows Iranian authorities conducting training sessions on Hajj rituals for pilgrims to avoid mishaps during the annual pilgrimage. On 29 May 2024, a Facebook user Hazrat Khubaib posted a […]
Claim: Two pictures show PTI founder Imran Khan’s sons, Sulaiman Isa Khan and Kasim Khan, on their way to perform Hajj and in front of the Kaaba. Fact: Both images are doctored. On 14 June 2024, Soch Fact Check received a WhatsApp message containing a visual comprising two pictures; one of which seemingly shows Sulaiman […]
Claim: A picture shows the dead bodies of 13 people who died during the 2023 Hajj. Fact: The image dates back to at least 2017. On 10 July 2023, Facebook user ‘Ahmad Raza’ posted (archive) an image of multiple dead bodies, lined up in white cloth, inside what appears to be the Kaaba, or the […]
Claim: A viral WhatsApp message claims that Michael Jackson’s unreleased last song was about Hajj and that Saudi Arabia bought the rights from the US. Fact: Michael Jackson did not record this song, but Pakistani-Canadian singer Irfan Makki. It was uploaded on YouTube in 2012. The other claim that it was bought by Saudi Arabia […]
Claim: A video shared on social media shows pilgrims criticising the current Pakistan government for providing “terrible” lodging facilities during Hajj 2022 in Saudi Arabia. Fact: The video is, in fact, from August 2019 and shows pilgrims criticising the government at the time for providing inadequate lodging facilities. On 1 July 2022, Facebook user Raja […]