Pakistan’s Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, in a public embarrassment, has been caught passing off a 2019 image of exercises being carried out by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, as evidence of “Pakistan’s operational success in Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos” against India.
As per a press release by the Inter-Services Public Relations, the media wing of the Pakistan Armed Forces, at a dinner event held by Pakistan Field Marshal Munir “to honour the political leadership, steadfast commitment of the Armed Forces, and the indomitable spirit of the people of Pakistan,” he gifted a framed picture to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif showing rockets being launched. ‘Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos’ reads the title below the image, while the caption below that describes an operation by the Regiment of Pakistan Artillery.
The Pakistan Army named its retaliation to India’s Operation Sindoor as ‘Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos.
What comes off as odd is the picture’s striking resemblance to an earlier image available on the website of China’s Ministry of Defence.
While China’s image contains only a singular rocket launcher prominently in the frame, the picture being presented by Mr. Munir to Mr. Shehbaz prominently shows at least three launchers operating simultaneously. However, only a cursory glance at both the images reveal the same exact background showing a large plume of smoke behind the Chinese launcher and the purported Pakistani launchers. This points to an alleged morphing of the original image released by China.
Targeted reverse image searches of the Pakistani picture also lead back to the image available on the website of China’s Ministry of Defense
The press release by Pakistan on the said event also highlighted how Mr. Munir “acknowledged the unwavering role of Pakistani youth and media in countering the disinformation campaign waged by India, describing them as a ‘steel wall’ against malign propaganda.” India during the Operation Sindoor had highlighted how Pakistan had “unleashed a full-blown disinformation offensive” on social media in a “desperate attempt to shift the focus from ground reality”. Mr. Munir’s latest gift to Mr. Sharif appears to add to this offensive.
