Claim: Viral clips claim to show citizens of Peshawar protesting against the recently imposed governor’s rule.
Fact: The video, which actually originates from Vietnam, shows fans celebrating a win against Thailand in Thai Nguyen on 26 August 2026.
On 12 October 2026, Facebook user سوال کرنا جرم ہے؟؟ , posted a video of a large crowd of demonstrators around a roundabout.
The top text in yellow in this news coverage states:
یہ پشاور شہر کے مناظر ہیں جہاں موبائل اور انٹرنیٹ بند کر دیا گیا تھا شہر کو کنٹینرز سے بلاک کر دیا گیا ہے اس کے باوجود لوگوں کی بڑی تعداد گورنر راج کے خلاف نکلے ہیں۔
[Translation: “These are scenes from the city of Peshawar, where mobile and internet services were suspended and the city was blocked off with containers; despite this, a large number of people have come out to protest against Governor’s Rule.”]
The news clipping was posted with the caption in Urdu that has been translated for clarity:
کنٹینرز اور پابندیاں بھی عوام کو نہیں روک سکیں۔ پشاور کی تازہ ترین صورتحال پر آپ کی کیا رائے ہے؟
کمنٹس میں بتائیں۔
[Translation: “Even shipping containers and restrictions could not stop the public. What is your opinion on the latest situation in Peshawar? Let us know in the comments.”]
Screenshot of a viral Facebook post.
Governor’s rule imposed in KPK
On 11 October 2026, the federal government imposed an emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The development came after President Asif Ali Zardari gave his approval under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution, dealing with the proclamation of emergency in a province and imposition of governor’s rule in case of “failure of constitutional machinery” in a province, respectively.
President Zardari approved the summary after his meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif a day earlier, on 10 October, where they discussed the possibility of imposing an emergency in KPK. The move comes after the talks between the PML-N led federal government and the PTI-led government in the province reached a “deadlock” on 3 October when the two sides had met to discuss PTI’s long march to Islamabad and counter-terrorism policy in KPK.
After the talks ended, Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas told the media that they had reached a “deadlock” over issues regarding meeting with PTI founder Imran Khan and resolving terrorism in KPK. PTI interim chairman Barrister Gohar Khan said that the party’s long march would still go ahead, and also asserted that imposing an emergency or governor rule was not a solution to terrorism. PTI also posted a press release on their X account and stated that the “principal point of deadlock” between the two was their demand for immediate access to former prime minister Imran Khan. According to the party, the government did agree to restore meetings between Khan and his family but refused additional measures concerning his health and medical assessment.
On the other hand, Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry blamed the provincial government for failed negotiations because they “could not assure whether they would cooperate in the fight against terrorism in the future”. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also addressed a press conference in Lahore on October 4 where he held Afridi responsible for “sabotaging negotiations”. He said that the two sides had agreed upon “100% of political things” so that the KP government could come on board with the federal government on issues regarding counter-terrorism.
Following the imposition of governor’s rule in KPK, the federal government formed an 11-member technocratic KP Advisory Council to assist Governor Faisal Karim Kundi with taking charge of the province. Simultaneously, KPK Information Minister Shafi Jan and MNA Shahid Khattak took to their X accounts and claimed that Afridi had been arrested. A day later, on 12 October, Chaudhry confirmed to Reuters that Afridi and some of his cabinet members were in preventive custody. He further clarified that those facing criminal cases would be charged and tried while the rest will be released.
On 13 October, media reports broadcasted the intense volatility in Bara Bazaar where recordings show law enforcement deploying tear gas, baton charges, and live warning fire to disperse demonstrators resisting Emergency and Governor’s Rule. Video clips circulating online depict heavy street fires, destruction of government infrastructure like the NADRA centre and severe civilian injuries from live rounds.
As of 14 October, in KP’s areas of Bajaur, Dir, Bannu, and Dera Dawn, protests have intensified as protestors clashed with police and government buildings were set ablaze. Security forces responded with shipping-container blockades, tear gas, and Section 144 restrictions. Moreover, simultaneously lawyers boycotted court proceedings to protest the imposition of emergency measures and governor’s rule. The Khyber PakhtunKhwa Bar Council “expressed deep reservations over the emergency measures invoked under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution.”
Following the coverage of clashes between protesters and government, The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) issued a notification on 13 October banning satellite television channels, current affairs and regional-language channels from broadcasting “unfortunate/unpleasant incidents such as explosion, blast, firing, terrorist attack etc.” PEMRA has warned that violations of this notification will result in legal action.
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check ran a reverse-image search of the keyframe at 0:03 seconds, showing the crowds around the roundabout. This search led to social media posts dated around 26 to 27 August 2026. One Tiktok post was captioned “Bộ sưu tập hình ảnh ghi lại không khí ăn mừng đội tuyển Việt Nam vô địch ASEAN Cup 2026 vào đêm bão tại Thái Nguyên.” When translated in English this means: “A photo collection capturing the celebratory atmosphere in Thai Nguyen on a stormy night following the Vietnam national team’s ASEAN Cup 2026 victory.”
A side-by-side comparison of the post and the video showed visual consistencies, particularly the recognisable landmark, which was found to be a central roundabout called Đường tròn Trung tâm. The red flags apparent in the video can also be taken to be Vietnamese flags.
Left: Screenshot from Facebook post. Right: Image from the Tiktok post.
Đường tròn Trung tâm in Thai Nguyen seen Google Street View.
We then conducted a keyword search for “Vietnam national team’s ASEAN Cup”, “Thailand football team defeat 26 August” and “Thái Nguyên celebrations”. We found news articles headlined “Sea of red floods Vietnam’s streets after ASEAN Cup win over Thailand” and “A sea of people flooded the streets of the mountain city of Thai Nguyen to celebrate the Vietnamese national team’s victory.”
Both articles are dated to when Vietnam played Thailand in the ASEAN Cup. The images of celebrations seen in the articles are also similar to what we can see in the clip. The video therefore predates the recent events in KPK.
Our investigation therefore confirmed that the footage is from Đường tròn Trung tâm in Thái Nguyên, and it shows football fans celebrating Vietnam’s victory against Thailand in the 2026 ASEAN Cup. It does not show protests in Peshawar against the governor’s rule.
Virality
The footage has been found on all social media platforms, and on Facebook it received 3 million viewers, 117K likes and 12K reshares.
A fan page of Pakistani journalist Imran Riaz Khan posted the video on X where it received 580.2K views and 9.3K likes.
On Instagram it received around 1152 views and 67 likes.
Conclusion: The video being shared is not from Peshawar, nor does it show protests against the recently imposed governor’s rule. It was taken in Vietnam in August 2026 and shows football fans celebrating a victory in the ASEAN Cup.
To appeal against our fact-check, please send an email to appeals@sochfactcheck.com