Pakistan news anchor crying over Gaza war, not India conflict

Published on May 9, 2025 at 10:35
3 min read
By AFP India

A clip of a Pakistan television anchor in tears was filmed while she reported on the condition of Palestinians in Gaza, contrary to posts claiming she was reacting to missile strikes carried out by India on its arch-rival. The video was previously shared by Pakistan's Express News on November 6, 2023 as well as by the anchor, Farwa Waheed, on her official Instagram page.

"Pakistani News Anchor Breaks Down on Live TV, Prays for 'Poor Souls' After Operation Sindoor," reads part of a May 6 Instagram post from local media Pune News Age.

The attached clip was shared after New Delhi launched missiles it said targeted "terrorist camps" and Pakistan retaliated with a barrage of artillery strikes (archived link). At least 48 deaths have been reported on both sides since the escalation, 32 of them in Pakistan, including children.

"Your innocent people who are being martyred, they will meet Allah. They will tell Allah what they suffered in this world," an emotional Waheed says in the clip in Urdu. "Please ask them not to complain about us to Allah but rather ask him to grant us courage."

Screenshot of the false Instagram post, captured on May 9, 2025

The video also spread on Facebook after the deadly confrontations, which occurred two weeks after New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing an attack on the Indian-run side of disputed Kashmir -- an accusation Pakistan rejects.

But the clip does not show Waheed reacting to the ongoing crisis.

A reverse image search using keyframes from the falsely shared clip led a longer version published on the YouTube channel of Pakistani media organisation Express News on November 6, 2023 (archived link).

The clip used in the false posts corresponds to the 9:11 mark of the YouTube video (archived link). Earlier in the video, Waheed speaks about the condition of Palestinians in Gaza following the outbreak of war there.

The war was sparked by Hamas's unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official data (archived link).

Of the 251 people abducted in Israel that day, 58 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 declared dead by the Israeli army. Hamas is also holding the body of an Israeli soldier killed during a previous war in Gaza, in 2014.

The Israeli offensive launched in retaliation for the October 7 attack has killed at least 52,760 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to data from the Hamas-run health ministry, which is considered reliable by the United Nations.

Screenshot comparison of the clip used in the false post (left) and the Express News video from 2023 (right)

Waheed also shared the footage on her Instagram page on November 7, 2023.

Screenshot of the clip posted on Waheed's Instagram page

"I couldn't control my tears and emotions .. i know we can't do anything for the people of palestine (Gaza) Thousand of people have lost their lives, many are struggling to survive and that hurts a lot .. may this brutality end soon," her post reads.

AFP has debunked other misinformation that has flooded social media on the India-Pakistan crisis here, here and here.

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