“We have heard Imran Khan’s speech with our entire family in India. It is heartening to hear the words of Islam.”

This message has been posted on Twitter by a user @saira_muslim, along with a photograph purportedly showing an Indian Muslim family glued to a television set. They seem to be watching Pakistan PM Imran Khan addressing the UN General Assembly.

The above tweet is of September 27. That day, Imran Khan had addressed the UNGA, wherein he repeatedly referred to Kashmir. The handle @saira_muslim has been created recently (September 2019) and has a rather poor following of around 500. This tweet, however, has been retweeted over 1200 times so far.

Alt News found the image and the accompanying claim was also circulated by several social media users and handles from Pakistan.

FACT CHECK: PHOTOSHOPPED IMAGE

The picture tweeted by @saira_muslim, showing a Muslim family intently watching Imran Khan’s speech, is photoshopped. This was established by a simple reverse search of the image, which revealed the source. The original picture had appeared in June 2009 in an article in The Star, on former U.S President Barack Obama. It has been posted below.

Source: The Star

As can be seen, in the original photograph, the family can be seen watching a speech by then U.S President Barack Obama. It may be recalled that in June 2009, Obama had delivered a historic speech at the American University in Cairo, Egypt wherein he had specifically addressed the Islamic world.

The two images- original and photoshopped, have been posted below for comparison.

It may be noted that the image shared on social media is photoshopped. The family seen in the image is watching a televised address of Barack Obama and NOT Imran Khan. Moreover, the image is from 2009 and is in no way related to Khan’s recent UNGA speech.

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About the Author

Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming.