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| - Fact Check: Old photo passed off as security provided to NZ cricket team by Pak govt
An image of a convoy is being widely circulated on social media with the claim that it shows the security cover given to the Sri Lankan cricket team by the Pakistan government.
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India Today Fact Check
This photo is old and was clicked during Sri Lanka’s 2019 Pakistan in 2019.
The New Zealand cricket team called off their Pakistan tour on September 17, citing security threats. Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Rameez Raja said that NZ's move was "frustrating" and added the team would "hear us at ICC".
In the backdrop of these events, an image of a convoy of armed security personnel has gone viral with the claim that this was the security given to the Sri Lankan cricket team by the Pakistan government.
A Twitter user shared this image with the caption, "New Zealand Cricket team found this security arrangement inadequate."
The archived version of this post can be seen here.
India Today Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA) has found that the viral image is an old photograph clicked during the Sri Lankan cricket team's 2019 Pakistan tour.
AFWA probe
After a reverse search of the viral image, we found that the photo was published by News18 Tamil on September 30, 2019. As per this report, the image shows high-security cover provided to the Sri Lankan cricket team by Pakistan.
In March 2009, the Sri Lankan team's bus that was carrying cricketers and coaching staff was attacked by terrorists in Lahore. When the Sri Lankan team returned to Pakistan for the first time after the attack after a decade as State Guest, the Pakistan government beefed up the security for the team.
A Google search with relevant keywords led us to a video posted on the official YouTube channel of 'Sri Lanka Cricket'. This video has several visuals resembling the viral image.
In the video, the then national team manager of the Sri Lankan cricket team, Asantha De Mel, can be seen saying that Pakistan has provided the kind of security that they promised.
Factly had also debunked this claim earlier.
Evidently, an old image from 2019 has resurfaced with the claim that it is recent and shows the beefed-up security for the New Zealand cricket team in Pakistan.
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