Yearly Archives: 2025

Ever since his arrest, a graphic has been going viral carrying the photograph of Tennakoon, and a text in Sinhala which reads, “Since almost 100 years of the beginning of Nalanda College, the first IGP born from the school has surrendered to the courts. We are proud of him for this gesture.” The graphic attributes this statement to the Old Boys’ Association of Nalanda College, where Tennakoon studied.

Claim: London mayor Sadiq Khan pledges 40,000 houses exclusively for Muslims in the city.Fact: Sadiq Khan did not pledge a housing plan just for Muslims. The claim misinterprets comments he made in a 2024 pre-election interview on building 40,000 council homes and 6,000 rent-controlled...

Several social media users are sharing a graphic claiming to show the doctor who was raped in the Anuradhapura Hospital last week. The graphic card features the image of a young woman in a sari sporting a stethoscope, with the Sinhala text, “In the official quarters of doctors… a pretty lady doctor has been abused by a sex-hungry man. Here’s the story from the Anuradhapura Hospital…”

Claim: A video showing massive smoke billowing over an area engulfed by fire, from the recent hijacking of the Jaffar Express train by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) in Pakistan.Fact: This is false. The viral video actually shows an incident of fire in Karachi...

Claim: The Chinese government is destroying mosques after declaring Islam a mental illness.Fact: This is false. The viral video actually shows the demolition of a theme park in Indonesia, not mosques in China. A one-minute and seventeen-second video showing a mosque being demolished, is being...

Two videos have been widely circulated as “true” footage from Sri Lanka by Facebook and TikTok users, purportedly showing farmers proudly displaying a giant carrot and a gigantic pineapple that were grown on their farms in Nuwara Eliya and Gampaha.

Claim: Image of a man Vandalising the Hambantota Divisional Secretariat.Fact: While there has indeed been an incident of vandalism at the Hambantota Divisional Secretariat, this viral image is AI-generated. A two minute long video, allegedly showing an incident of vandalism at the Hambantota Divisional Secretariat...

Several social media posts are circulating in Sinhala showing a collage of photographs of Pope Francis with Thai Buddhist monks, claiming that the Pope has “sought the blessings of Buddhism in His last few days.” Some posts also insinuate that despite Christianity being a popular religion in the world, “even for the Pope Buddhism is the last resort.”

In December 2024, the NPP government decided to reduce the number of security personnel assigned to each former president of Sri Lanka. This included reducing President Rajapaksa’s security detail from over 350 personnel to just 60. After this reduction, Rajapaksa decided to file a Fundamental Rights petition with the Supreme Court, stating that this reduction is unjust.

Claim: The government is imposing a 15% tax on money sent from abroad by migrant workers.Fact: Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Anil Jayantha, confirmed in a parliamentary session that this news is false. Sri Lanka's National People's Power (NPP) government’s 2025 Budget has introduced a...