A widely circulated image claiming to show the UK-based The Daily Telegraph praising the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) as the “King of the Skies” amid the recent India-Pakistan military escalation has been proven to be fake. According to Dawn’s iVerify Pakistan, a fact-checking initiative, the image is not an authentic front page from the British newspaper and was generated using AI tools.
The image, which surfaced on social media on May 10, 2025, was initially posted by Barrister Khadija Siddiqi with the caption: “The glory of Allah, our warriors!” It quickly went viral, amassing tens of thousands of views across Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and other platforms. Even government officials, including Ikhtiar Wali Khan, a coordinator on information for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister, shared it on their profiles.
Pakistan is now grasping at straws.
— ishaan prakash (@ishaan_ANI) May 16, 2025
Pakistan’s Deputy PM Ishaq Dar lied to the country’s senate that the Telegraph newspaper moved a headline that the PAF was the ‘Undisputed King of the Skies’. So embarrassing that Dawn News had to fact check him. pic.twitter.com/lhrMnpTArM
However, a detailed investigation uncovered glaring inconsistencies. The fact-check team found multiple typographical errors in the image, including misspellings like “Fγααωσε” for “Force” and “preformance” for “performance.” Words such as “Aur Force” and “advancemend” instead of “Air Force” and “advancement” further raised red flags.
When compared to actual layouts from The Daily Telegraph on its official website, the viral image did not match. Legitimate editions feature varied headlines, multiple stories, bylines, and other standard editorial elements—none of which appeared in the circulated image. The design of the fake front page was unusually centred and lacked journalistic formatting.
To confirm its authenticity, the image was analysed through AI detection tools including Decopy AI and Undetectable AI. Both tools concluded with 99.99% and 100% certainty, respectively, that the image was AI-generated.
The viral post emerged shortly after a brief but intense military exchange between India and Pakistan, which began following a deadly terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, on April 22. India launched retaliatory strikes, and Pakistan responded with Operation Bunyan um Marsoos on May 10. Tensions have since cooled after a US-brokered ceasefire.
Fact-check Status: FALSE
No such article has been published by The Daily Telegraph. The viral image is fake and artificially generated to mislead the public.