The image shows a crowd at Japan's Narita airport in 2019

This article is more than one year old.
Published on October 5, 2021 at 04:38
3 min read
By AFP Sri Lanka

An image has been shared in multiple news articles and Facebook posts alongside a claim it shows thousands of people gathered at India's Delhi airport to welcome a Sri Lankan singer. The image, however, has been shared in a misleading context: it shows a crowd at Japan's Narita airport in 2019.

The photo was published in an article by Sri Lanka's Sinhala-language print outlet Lankadeepa on September 30, 2021.

The headline reads: "Thousands gather at New Delhi airport to welcome Yohani".

Yohani is a Sri Lankan vocalist whose song gained popularity in India.

Her first performance in India was held on September 30.

Screenshot of the article taken on October 1, 2021

The Sinhala-language news article translates to English as: "Over 450,000 fans had gathered at the New Delhi airport to welcome Sri Lanka's new generation singer Yohani Silva who is due to perform at a concert in New Delhi, India.

"Even before she arrived on stage, she is said to have received monetary gifts worth over 500,000 USD. Among those who joined to welcome her were millionaire film stars and businessmen.

"Yohani's maiden concert is due to be held in New Delhi. The photo shows part of the crowd that had gathered at the New Delhi airport to welcome Yohani."

The image was also seen circulating on Facebook here and here.

The claim is misleading: the image actually shows a crowd stranded at Japan's Narita airport during a typhoon in September 2019.

A reverse image search of the photo found this news article published by Japanese news agency Kyodo News on September 10, 2019.

The headline reads: "Narita airport chaos ending with resumption of train services".

The image shows crowds that stayed at the Narita airport overnight after public transportation services were suspended in Tokyo following Typhoon Faxai.

Below is a screenshot of the Kyodo news article:

Screenshot of the September 2019 Kyodo news article captured on October 1, 2021

The Kyodo news article reads: "Sleepless travelers left Narita airport on Tuesday, a day after Typhoon Faxai disrupted flights and train services and forced some 13,000 people to stay overnight at the major international airport near Tokyo."

Below is a screenshot comparison of the image in the misleading posts (L) and on Kyodo News (R):

The image was also featured in other news relating to the chaos caused by the typhoon in September 2019, as seen here.

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