Fact Check: Photos of 2020 Turkey passed off as recent quake in Afghanistan
A 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit Tajikistan on 12 February 2021.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 15 Feb 2021 3:26 PM GMT
Hyderabad: A 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit Tajikistan on 12 February 2021. Strong tremors were felt in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern Indian, including Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, the Delhi-NCR, and Uttarakhand.
Amidst this, three photos showing people standing amid the debris of a collapsed building has become viral on social media with the claim that it shows "shocking" pictures from Afghanistan.
Fact Check:
NewsMeter found that none of the viral images are linked to the Tajikistan earthquake and that the claim is FALSE.
IMAGE 1:
We performed a reverse image search and found a video by Global News that carried a video that contained the same viral visuals. The video shows rescuers helping injured people from the rubble of a collapsed building after an earthquake hit Turkey on 25 January 2020.
IMAGE 2:
We found the second image in a report by The New Indian Express published on 25 January 2020 with the caption, "Powerful earthquake kills 21 people, injures over 1000 in eastern Turkey." Around 21 people were killed after an earthquake hit Turkey.
IMAGE 3:
We found the third image in a report by The Associated Press published on 25 January 2020. The description of the image reads, "People look at a collapsed building after a 6.8 earthquake struck Elazig city centre in the eastern Turkey, Friday, Jan. 24, 2020. An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 rocked eastern Turkey on Friday, causing some buildings to collapse and killing at least four people, Turkish officials said."
It is clear that all the viral images are from an earthquake that hit Turkey last year and are not related to the recent earthquake in Afghanistan. Hence, the claim is FALSE.
