A picture Claims shared on Facebook: The Washington Post published an article claiming that Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun faked an attack on himself.
Verdict: False
The Washington Post did not publish this article. A Washington Post editor confirmed that it was not published by the newspaper.
Fact check:
Social media users claim that the Washington Post published an article claiming that the Pannun assassination attempt was staged. The Washington Post’s alleged headline reads: “Assassination attempt on US soil reveals darker side: Pannun may have staged attack on himself to incriminate India.”
This claim is false. Check Your Fact was unable to locate the article on the Washington Post website. A search of the Washington Post’s verified social media accounts also yielded no results for the alleged article. (RELATED: Was Emmanuel Macron booed at the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics?)
It appears that the image was copied from a Washington Post article about the assassination plot. The original article is about the assassination plot and does not claim that it was staged. It is headlined: “A murder plot on American soil reveals a darker side of Modi’s India.”
Gerry Shih, the India bureau chief of The Washington Post, confirmed on X that the claim was false.
🚨The viral post below is Photoshop, NOT @washingtonpost Story
Unfortunately, it already has 3.2K retweets – another Wednesday for the Indian social media disinformation factory
Luckily, you can read the true story and help spread it at this gift link: https://t.co/k30LErYx6r pic.twitter.com/UzMHwRn5yK
— Gerry Shih (@gerryshih) 21 August 2024
“The viral post below is Photoshop, NOT @washingtonpost story… Unfortunately, it already has 3.2k retweets – another Wednesday for the Indian social media disinformation factory… Fortunately, you can read the real story via this gift link and help spread it,” Shih tweeted.
