What was claimed
A clip shows a recent fire caused by Indian missiles hitting a road close to Pakistan’s Nur Khan airbase.
Our verdict
False. This clip has been circulating online since December 2023, when it was shared with captions saying it showed a fire near the airbase.
A clip is circulating on social media with claims it shows the aftermath of Indian missiles hitting a road close to an airbase in Pakistan, but the video is actually from 2023 and is not linked to the recent conflict between India and Pakistan.
The clip shows a large fire and columns of smoke on what looks like a large road. It has been shared with the caption: “Indian missiles have reportedly hit a road close to Pakistan’s PAF [Pakistan Air Force] Base Nur Khan in Rawalpindi. The impact zone is near the military installation”.
The social media clip has been online since at least 6 December 2023, when it was shared with captions claiming it showed a fire caused by tankers colliding near the air base. One post said: “Tankers collided in front of Nur Khan Airbase - Old Airport. People are requested to avoid the road. Fire all over. Give way to emergency services.” Other posts shared footage appearing to show the same incident from different angles.
The video has also been shared with a similar caption on X (formerly Twitter) by US influencer Jackson Hinkle. Full Fact has contacted Mr Hinkle for comment and will update this article if we receive a response.
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While Nur Khan was one of multiple airbases Pakistan said was hit by Indian missiles last week, this is not what the clip shows.
According to AP on 10 May, an army spokesperson for Pakistan, Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif, said Pakistan’s air force assets were safe following India’s strikes. Another Pakistani military spokesperson, Lt General Chaudhry, reportedly said in a televised address that the majority of India’s missiles were intercepted by air defence systems.
We’ve written about other miscaptioned images and videos relating to the unfolding conflict. You can find more of our work debunking misinformation on this topic in our roundup.
The Indian defence ministry said the strikes on Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir were in response to an attack in which 26 people were killed at a popular destination in Indian-administered Kashmir on 22 April. Pakistan has denied any involvement.
A ceasefire agreed by both countries was announced on 10 May and is still in place at the time of writing, despite accusations of “violations” from both sides.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as false because this clip shows a fire in December 2023 not the result of a recent Indian missile attack on Pakistan’s Nur Khan airbase.
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