Claim: The Government of Brazil has permitted its citizens to start killing bike-riding muggers in a bid to bring down street crime. Fact: There is no such law in Brazil. The video accompanying the viral claim comprises footage of different incidents where citizens either acted in self-defence or helped fellow citizens during muggings; however, they […]
Claim: A video shows a cat dangling from a spectators’ deck in a Qatar stadium and later saved by fans standing below during the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Fact: The video is unrelated to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar and is, in fact, from the United States, where fans caught the cat in […]
Claim: A “witch” was filmed hovering in Kidney Hill Park in Karachi, Pakistan and strange noises heard by park officials in the dead of night. The person who shot the video was down with a 104°F fever. Fact: The video clip is, in fact, the work of Zambian visual effects artist and filmmaker Joseph Njovu, […]
Claim: One of Karachi’s busiest thoroughfares, Shahrah-e-Faisal, will be closed to traffic from 1pm to 4am on Monday, 31 October 2022, for International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) 2022. Fact: Karachi Traffic Police Deputy Inspector General’s office confirmed to Soch Fact Check that Shahrah-e-Faisal will remain open today; the alert currently doing the rounds on […]
Claim: The thumbnail image of an Urdu-language video shared by 24 News on YouTube and Facebook mentions that “more than 150 people have been martyred” in a “horrible blast”, accompanied by an image of an explosion. Fact: The thumbnail image is false because there has been no blast that killed over 150 people in October […]
Claim: Inspector General of Sindh Police, Ghulam Nabi Memon, claimed in a statement reported by ARY News that Karachi has a relatively lower crime rate compared to other cities in the world. Fact: According to data from the UNODC and crowd-sourced global statistics, Karachi is not one of the safer cities in the world. On […]
Claim: Pakistan People’s Party has decided to suspend the membership of politician Aitzaz Ahsan over controversial remarks. Fact: Although there are demands within the party to suspend Aitzaz Ahsan, the Central Executive Committee of the party has made no such decision. On 14 October 2022, mainstream news websites and social media posts reported that Pakistan […]
Claim: A video shows gunmen opening fire at a crowd in the Pul-e-Khumri area of Afghanistan, reportedly killing 51 people over a dispute about a donkey. Fact: The video is from an 8 September 2022 incident, when two groups in Karachi, Pakistan clashed over a money dispute. Fact or Fiction? On 15 September 2022, Daily […]
Claim: A social media video shows a gunman attacking a family on the roadside in Karachi, Pakistan. Fact: The video is not from Pakistan but from a shooting in Ecuador in May 2022. On 10 September 2022, a Twitter user shared a video with an Urdu caption that, when translated to English, reads, “Blind shooting […]
Claim: Mohenjo-Daro will likely be removed from the list of World Heritage sites. Fact: Mohenjo-Daro was never under consideration for removal, and UNESCO has directed $350,000 to the recovery and restoration of heritage sites in Pakistan in the aftermath of the flood. On 4 September 2022, a Facebook post claimed that Mohenjo-Daro will likely be […]
Claims: A viral social media post claims that a man killed and beheaded his daughter in Karachi. Fact: The incident took place in Meerut, India not Pakistan. Further, images of a man and a young girl being shared with the claim are unrelated to this case. On 26 August 2022, a Facebook post went viral […]
Claim: A photo apparently shows Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites visible in the sky from Pakistan. Fact: The image is, in fact, two years old and has no link to Pakistan. It was taken as a screenshot from a video posted by a Kosovo-based software developer. On 8 September 2022, Facebook user Umar Farooq posted in […]