No, this is not a photo of a Christian being flogged in Saudi Arabia
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on May 1, 2019 at 07:00
- 2 min read
- By AFP Australia
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The photo has been shared more than ten thousand times since it was posted here on Facebook on August 6, 2018. The Facebook page’s associated website states here that it is a religious organisation based in Papua New Guinea.
The misleading post’s caption says: “Christians are sentenced to 500 lashes for not denying Jesus in Saudi Arabia please pray for them, and share this post to others, share to any group you know for prayers. Please help.”
Below is a screenshot of the misleading Facebook post:
The same photo was shared with a similar claim on Facebook here, here and here. It was also shared here on an online forum with more than two million members.
A reverse image search on Google shows the exact same photo was originally published here on August 21, 2007.
It was published on the website of media company Newscom.
Below is a screenshot of the photo on the Newscom website:
The photo caption states: “Saeed Ghanbari receives 80 lashes in public view in the Qazvin province, 91 Miles (165 Km) west of Tehran, Iran on August 21, 2007. Ghanbari was convicted of consuming alcohol and having sex outside of marriage. (UPI Photo/Mohammad Kheirkhah)”
The caption credits photographer Mohammad Kheirkhah at news agency United Press International (UPI).
UPI is a US-based news agency and its official website can be seen here.
Mohammad Kheirkhah won an “Award of Excellence” for the photo here in a photographic contest.
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