 "No Indian drone shot down: How New Delhi is exposing Pakistan’s lies after Op Sindoor")
Just after 1 am, local time, on Wednesday (May 7), the Indian military launched Operation Sindoor, a series of strikes targeting terrorist camps inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Rafales and MiGs were in the air for less than half an hour, firing missiles that rained hell on nine locations across the border.
But even as the world watched, Pakistan began to wage a battle against India — that of misinformation and propaganda. In fact, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said that Pakistan had “unleashed a full-blown disinformation offensive” on social media in a “desperate attempt to shift the focus from ground reality.”
“Pro-Pakistan social media handles and even influential political figures are deliberately spreading fake news, fabricating stories of miraculous military victories and heroic retaliation that simply do not exist,” the ministry said.
At least eight fabricated claims, including the downing of Rafale jets, have been debunked after they were shared by pro-Pakistan social media accounts and prominent political figures in the neighbouring nation.
Did Pakistan shoot down a drone?
A day after Operation Sindoor, Pakistani media reported that security forces have shot down an Indian drone in Walton area of Lahore. The security officials downed the drone immediately after spotting it while no damages have been reported in the incident.
The Indian drone shot down in Lahore at 0653 hours was not a surveillance drone, but likely a kamikaze drone (a suicide drone that explodes upon hitting its intended target). It can carry up to 40 kg of explosives. India is on the offensive, while Pakistan is on the defensive. pic.twitter.com/bPpUqKg8S9
— Pakistan Walli (@pakistanwalli) May 8, 2025
Reports also noted that another drone was destroyed in Diwalian area of Chakwal. However, no any casualty or damages have been reported.
Did this Indian drone really get intercepted in Pakistan❓
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 8, 2025
Pakistan-based handles are sharing an old image claiming that the Pakistan Army has intercepted a UAV drone that fell in Gujranwala, Pakistan.#PIBFactCheck
✅ The image being circulated is from the Ukraine-Russia… pic.twitter.com/XdY1D9ZmuQ
Earlier too, Pakistani handles claimed that the military intercepted a UAV drone that fell in Gujranwala, Pakistan. However, the image shared in the post actually dates back to 2022 from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Did an Indian dam collapse trying to stop Pakistan’s water?
A day after the Pahalgam attack on April 22, India announced that it was putting in abeyance the Indus Waters Treaty. As a consequence of this, India briefly stopped water flowing through the Baglihar dam on the Chenab River.
Subsequently, many Pakistan-based social media users began sharing a video of an alleged Indian TV news report of the gates of a dam collapsing. They claimed this was the Kishanganga dam. A voiceover in the video says the same.
India's Kishanganga Dam that was closed to stop water flow to Pakistan has collapsed. pic.twitter.com/zSnUAmYROS
— Dr. Syeda Abiha Fatimah Shah 🪄🌹✨❤️🌙 (@DivineBows) May 6, 2025
Sharing this video, one X user wrote, “Breaking: India’s move to block water at the Kishanganga Dam has backfired. The dam gates could not withstand the pressure and collapsed.”
However, the claim is false, as the video shows a spill gate collapse in Texas, United States, in 2019.
Did Pakistan down India’s fighter jets?
No.
Shortly after India launched Operation Sindoor, using French-made Rafale jets, Pakistan claimed it had shot down five Indian Air Force jets. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the military had shot down five Indian warplanes, including three French-made Rafales, and officials released a video showing smoke rising from an apparent crash site. Sharif said Pakistani planes never entered Indian territory and only shot down the aircraft after they had “delivered their payload.”
“We were ready to pounce on the enemy’s planes and throw them in the sea,” Sharif told Pakistan’s Parliament on Wednesday evening. “The enemy knows about our capabilities,” he added.
Additionally, multiple pro-Pakistan social media accounts showed Pakistan downing India’s fighter jets.
⚠️Propaganda Alert!
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 7, 2025
Beware of old images shared by pro-Pakistan handles in the present context!
An #old image showing a crashed aircraft is being circulated with the claim that Pakistan recently shot down an Indian Rafale jet near Bahawalpur during the ongoing #OperationSindoor… pic.twitter.com/LdkJ1JYuH0
However, India’s Press Information Bureau has debunked these claims. One of the videos shared is, in fact, an Indian Air Force (IAF) MiG-29 fighter jet that crashed in Barmer, Rajasthan, in September 2024. Similarly, another video claiming to show Pakistan downing a Rafale jet near Bahawalpur is actually that of an IAF MiG-21 fighter jet that crashed in Moga district in Punjab in 2021.
Another video showing Pakistan shooting down one of India’s jets during Operation Sindoor is from February 2025 and depicts the crash of an Indian Air Force (IAF) Mirage 2000 aircraft near Shivpuri, Gwalior, which occurred during a routine training mission.
What’s even more surprising is that when Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khwaja Asif was asked for tangible evidence of downing the Indian jets during a CNN interview, he responded, “It is all on social media, and Indian social media, not our social media. The debris of the jets fell on their side. It is all over the Indian media.”
Did India wave white flag at LoC?
Shortly after Operation Sindoor took place, Pakistan retaliated with heavy firing along the Line of Control. The shelling has killed 15 civilians on the Indian side, and prompted officials to move residents from the borders to bunkers.
Amidst this, Pakistani media and multiple social media handles shared videos depicting what they claimed was the Indian Army hoisting the White Flag to accept defeat. A report that appeared on Samaa TV said that a white flag was hoisted at the Chora Complex along the Line of Control. Ironically, there is no digital footprint of any ‘Chora Complex’ along the border within India.
Videos shared online also made similar claims. However, India clarified that the visuals being shared were from September 2019 of the Pakistan Army raising white flag at LoC to recover bodies of its dead soldiers.
This claim got further credibility after Pakistan’s Minister Attaullah Tarar publicly endorsed it without a shred of evidence.
Did Pakistan destroy brigade headquarters in Srinagar?
Indian government’s fact-checking unit has also debunked claims that Pakistan destroyed an Indian Brigade headquarters in Srinagar in retaliation for Operation Sindoor.
Social media posts falsely claims that Pakistan destroyed Indian Brigade Headquarters.#PIBFactCheck
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 7, 2025
❌ This claim is #FAKE
✅ Please avoid sharing unverified information and rely only on official sources from the Government of India for accurate information. pic.twitter.com/9W5YLjBubp
“Social media posts falsely claimed that Pakistan destroyed Indian Brigade Headquarters. This claim is #FAKE. Please avoid sharing unverified information and rely only on official sources from the Government of India for accurate information,” the PIB fact check said.
Did Pakistan capture Indian soldiers amid Operation Sindoor?
Pakistan Defence Minister on Wednesday claimed that Indian soldiers were captured during Operation Sindoor. He alleged that three Indian soldiers had been taken as prisoner of war as India carried out military strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and PoK.
Later, he made a U-turn, stating that no Indian soldiers were taken into custody. However, he went on to allege — without providing any evidence — that Indian troops were abandoning their posts.
How this is part of Pakistan age-old tactics?
Pro-Pakistani social media handles and prominent Pakistani officials circulating fake images, misrepresenting unrelated videos, and propagating entirely fabricated claims is part of the neighbouring nation’s attempt to control the narrative, said Indian defence experts.
This strategy, often deployed by Pakistan, is aimed at diverting attention from the effectiveness of India’s action, while simultaneously trying to influence both domestic sentiment and international opinion through false portrayals of battlefield developments, reported news agency IANS.
With inputs from agencies
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