Old picture of damaged road in Pakistan falsely linked to Afghanistan quake

A picture of a road damaged by an earthquake is being shared on social media. Users claim it shows the effects of the recent earthquake in Afghanistan.

By Newsmeter Network  Published on  26 Jun 2022 6:31 AM GMT
Old picture of damaged road in Pakistan falsely linked to Afghanistan quake

HYDERABAD: A picture of a road damaged by an earthquake is being shared on social media. Users claim it shows the effects of the recent earthquake in Afghanistan.

Netizens are sharing the picture with the caption: "Pray for people of #Afghanistan. #Earthquake in Afghanistan. 256 people have died and more than thousands are injured." While few others are sharing the picture with the hashtag "#AfghanistanEarthquake."


FACT CHECK:

NewsMeter performed a reverse image search and found the same image carried by multiple media houses from 2019. According to LiveMint and the Los Angeles Times, the picture was taken shortly after the tremor hit Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in 2019. The picture shows the view of damaged roads caused after an earthquake hit Mirpur, Pakistan. The picture was taken when Pakistan's military dispatched troops and medical teams reached the quake-affected area to assist civilian authorities in helping victims.

https://www.livemint.com/news/india/earthquake-tremors-felt-in-delhi-ncr-surrounding-areas-1569323939660.html

https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2019-09-24/earthquake-pakistan-mirpur-damage

The European Pressphoto Agency captured similar images from the quake. The caption suggests that the road was damaged after an earthquake of 5.8 magnitude with an epicenter that hit Mirpur on 24 September 2019.

https://webgate.epa.eu/webgate


Several social media users and journalists too shared similar pictures in 2019. BBC Pakistan & Afghanistan Correspondent tweeted that the pictures are from the earthquake in Pakistani Occupied Kashmir.

The viral picture is from a 2019 earthquake incident and is not linked to the recent earthquake that hit Afghanistan.

Claim Review:The picture shows the effects of the recent earthquake that hit Afghanistan.
Claimed By:Social Media Users
Claim Reviewed By:Newsmeter
Claim Source:Social Media
Claim Fact Check:False
Next Story