JournalismPakistan.com | Published May 02, 2025 at 07:50 pm | JP Staff Report
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ISLAMABAD-Dawn newspaper on Friday firmly denied publishing any report suggesting that the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had stolen a Pakistan Air Force (PAF) F-16 fighter jet.
The newspaper clarified that a screenshot circulating widely on X (formerly Twitter) is fake and digitally manipulated. According to Dawn, the doctored image falsely attributed a report to Dawn.com amid heightened tensions between Pakistan and India following a recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, located in Indian-occupied Kashmir.
The misleading post was shared by an Indian account and garnered over 263,000 views. It included a fabricated caption that read, “TTP has stolen a Pakistan Air Force fighter jet. If true, this marks a shocking breach in military security.”
Dawn stressed that no such report was ever published on its website, nor was it covered by any credible or mainstream news outlet.
An analysis using the AI-powered forensic tool FotoForensics revealed visible signs of image manipulation—particularly blurriness and distortion around the text—strong indicators of digital tampering.
The newspaper urged the public to verify information before sharing it, especially in times of heightened regional sensitivity.
اسلام آباد: پاکستان کے موقر اخبار ڈان نے جمعہ کے روز اس جعلی خبر کی سختی سے تردید کی ہے جس میں دعویٰ کیا گیا تھا کہ کالعدم تحریک طالبان پاکستان (ٹی ٹی پی) نے پاکستان ایئر فورس (پی اے ایف) کا ایک ایف-16 طیارہ چوری کر لیا ہے۔
اخبار نے وضاحت کی کہ سوشل میڈیا پلیٹ فارم ایکس (سابقہ ٹوئٹر) پر گردش کرنے والا اسکرین شاٹ جعلی اور ڈیجیٹل طور پر تبدیل شدہ ہے۔ ڈان کے مطابق، یہ جعلی خبر پلوامہ میں دہشتگرد حملے کے بعد پاک بھارت کشیدگی کے دوران ایک بھارتی اکاؤنٹ کی طرف سے شیئر کی گئی، جس میں دعویٰ کیا گیا کہ یہ رپورٹ Dawn.com نے شائع کی ہے۔
یہ گمراہ کن پوسٹ 2 لاکھ 63 ہزار سے زائد مرتبہ دیکھی گئی اور اس میں یہ جھوٹا کیپشن شامل تھا: "ٹی ٹی پی نے پاکستان ایئر فورس کا جنگی طیارہ چوری کر لیا۔ اگر یہ سچ ہے تو یہ عسکری سیکیورٹی میں حیرت انگیز خلا ہے۔"
ڈان نے زور دے کر کہا کہ نہ تو اس نے ایسی کوئی رپورٹ شائع کی ہے، نہ ہی کسی معتبر یا مرکزی میڈیا ادارے نے اس خبر کو رپورٹ کیا۔
AI ٹول FotoForensics کے ذریعے کی گئی جانچ میں تصویر کے ارد گرد دھندلا پن اور مسخ شدگی سامنے آئی، جو واضح طور پر ڈیجیٹل چھیڑ چھاڑ کی علامات ہیں۔
اخبار نے عوام سے اپیل کی ہے کہ وہ ایسی خبروں کی تصدیق کیے بغیر انہیں شیئر نہ کریں، خصوصاً ان مواقع پر جب علاقائی صورتحال حساس ہو۔
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