Imran Khan Arrested: News Channel Makes AI-Generated Images Look Real.Old videos, fake agreements go viral

AI Video & Visuals


Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan was arrested in the Al-Qadir Trust case on the grounds of the Islamabad High Court on Tuesday, May 9. The 70-year-old cricketer-turned-politician was in a court biometrics room when he was detained by the Pakistan Rangers, a federal militia law enforcement agency. According to the video, when PTI personnel refused to open the door, the Rangers broke through the glass window and entered the room.

According to a Pakistan-based daily newspaper report, breaking dawnKhan and his wife Bushra Bibi have been accused of “taking hundreds of canals of Rs 5 billion (for land) from Islamabad-based real estate firm Barrier Town in exchange for defending the company,” the National Audit Office said. under investigation by the NAB. in a money laundering case. ”

Shortly after his arrest, violent protests erupted across the country, arresting about 1,000 protesters. After his arrest, several images and videos of Imran Khan surfaced online along with various allegations.

Claim I: Image of Imran Khan in prison

On May 10, Aj Tak Bangla released a report claiming that images of Imran Khan in prison had been leaked. The report was entitled “Imran Khan Arrested: আগুন জ্বলছে পাকিস্তানে, জেলে কেমন ব্যবস্” It is What about the “leak” (translation: Pakistan is on fire, what are the Imran prison arrangements? Photos leaked) contains two images of Imran Khan that were allegedly clicked inside the prison. rice field.

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Aj Tak also used the image several times in his coverage of Imran Khan’s arrest. The segment was moderated by journalist Shubankar Mishra. (archive)

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The photo was also used on NDTV, Times Now Navbarat and gnews In reports/bulletins. Gee News described this as Imran Khan’s first photo since his arrest, but Times Now Navbarat said Khan looked lonely and helpless in the photo.

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Asianet News Tamil Naiduniya used one of these images, claiming it was taken during Khan’s first night in prison. Naiduniya claims Khan looks ill in the photos. They also added that he was not allowed to sleep and was tortured.

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fact check

I noticed that one of the images used by Aaj Tak Bangla has the text “Limited to halfway through” superimposed.


After searching for related keywords on Facebook, I found other images with the same watermark.


Midjourney is an AI tool that generates images from natural language descriptions called “prompts”. According to its website, it is an “independent research institute that explores new media of thought and expands the imagination of mankind.”

I also noticed some discrepancies with the images. In one of his images, Imran Khan has his seven fingers on his feet. Below I have compared it to other images of Imran Khan available online. As is evident, Khan actually lacks his seven toes.


Another inconsistency that’s clearly noticeable in the second photo is that Khan’s hands are out of shape. This is a common feature of AI-generated images.


According to the New Yorker article, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, and Darue It can render photorealistic landscapes, copy celebrity faces, remix images in the style of any artist, seamlessly replace an image’s background, but requires you to draw your hands. It is not possible to calculate the desired result when The generator can calculate that there are fingers on the hand, but so that the fingers recognize that he should only have five, or that the fingers have more or less a set length relative to each other. Generators are hard to train. That’s because the hand looks completely different at different angles.

It is therefore clear that media outlets such as Aj Tak and Aj Tak Bangla used AI-generated images of Imran Khan, which they claim were taken during his first night in prison.

Claim II: Protest against Imran Khan’s arrest in front of Nawaz Sharif’s house in London

Ashok Swain, a professor of peace and conflict studies at Uppsala University, tweeted a video of the protest that he claimed was filmed outside the home of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in London. “The protests have spread worldwide,” he said. (archive)

Several other users, including Twitter Blue subscribers, also shared the image @Bob_Kurt124 and @sajidnawazwattu.

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fact check

A reverse image search found a tweet from November 2022 containing the same video. The tweet claimed the video showed scenes outside Nawaz Sharif’s Abenfield mansion.

Found another video tweeted by @iihtishamm From April 2022, it will be published with the same visual.

Comparing the visuals of the viral video and the aforementioned tweet, it was clear that both videos were shot during the same event.


Supporters of Pakistan’s Terek-e-Inserf protest against the ouster of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in a no-confidence vote outside the residence of Pakistan Islamic League supreme leader Nawaz Sharif, according to The Print. Was.

Another tweet from April 2022 was also found, depicting the same scene outside Nawaz Sharif’s house.

So recent is the video of demonstrators protesting the defeat of Imran Khan after a no-confidence vote in front of Nawaz Sharif’s house in London in April 2022, May 9, 2023. Allegations that it was the aftermath of Imran Khan’s arrest on Sunday quickly circulated.

Claim 3: Agreement on how Khan will be treated in prison

Images of the documents have circulated online with claims that they show the agreement signed by US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blohm and Pakistani government official Imran Khan. The document purportedly lays out the terms of the agreement for Imran Khan’s arrest, including no rape or naked interrogation.

Terms used in this document are:

  • Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi will not be forced to strip naked during interrogation.
  • No one is allowed to rape Pakistani Tefrek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi, especially while he has hemorrhoids.
  • Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi will not be tortured with sticks or bamboo (sticks) of any kind.

Twitter Blue subscriber Pradeep Mahal, “Chairman of the Bharatiya Janata Party,” tweeted the document, calling it pathetic. The user is followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (archive)

Twitter Blue subscriber Gautam Trivedi also tweeted the document, writing, “According to confirmed and unreliable reports, Imran Khan has made an agreement with the Government of Pakistan regarding a guarantor in custody.” . (archive)

Twitter user @IndianSinghh also tweeted the image, garnering nearly 1,500 likes and over 390 retweets. (archive)

fact check

We have learned that the signatories include Home Affairs Minister Yousaf Naseem Kokar. However, further investigation revealed that Kohar had resigned from his post on March 7 this year, two months before the date mentioned in the letter written to the virus. Moreover, his name is spelled “Yousuf Naseem Khokhar”.

Furthermore, we have noticed that Mr. Kokal’s signature does not match that stated in the notice published by the official website of the Pakistan Federal Intelligence Agency.


Similarly, the signature of U.S. Ambassador Donald Blome in the viral image does not match Blome’s signature on the official website of the U.S. Embassy.


I also noticed some differences in the format of the letters. The letterhead font seen in the announcement (same day) published on the official website is different from the viral image. Also, the docket number date of the original notice from the PTI website is given in his YYYY format. However, the virus image has the date written in his YY format. The date format is also different.


Pakistan-based news outlet Geo TV also confirmed the allegations on May 10, stating, “Such an agreement was signed between Khan and the US ambassador to 𝘎𝘦𝘰𝘍𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬, a source familiar with the development, on condition of anonymity.” I said no,” he said. .

As a result, false documents purporting to show the terms of the agreement to arrest Imran Khan are circulating online. Alt News’ analysis indicates that the document was forged and that no such agreement was signed.

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