Claim: This X post with more than 2 million views, reads: "Pakistanis shot down 1 Rafale & 1 Su-30 near Akhnur! And destroyed our brigade HQ". It was published on an X account whose owner refers to the Indian government as "the Modi regime," and claims to be a "proud Indian" who values "truth over propaganda" in his account description.

Rating

DW Fact check: False. In this case, the account is spreading misinformation, as two of the pictures attached to his posts are not related to the Indian strikes on Pakistan last night. The top-right image does depict a Russian-built MiG-29 of the Indian Air Force (IAF), one of which Pakistan claims to have shot down last night. But the newspaper DNA India and other media outlets published the same photo as early as September 2024. According to these sources, the fighter jet had crashed in uninhabited territory in the Indian state of Rajasthan during a routine flight, causing no other damage than to the plane itself. The pilot reportedly ejected himself to safety. The picture on the left also shows an IAF aircraft, but just like in the previous two images, it was not used in the strikes on Pakistan. The news channel Times Now reported over n a month ago that a British-French Jaguar fighter jet had crashed in the northern Indian state of Gujarat, showing this very same image.

Reviewed by DW Fact check ↗ · May 7, 2025