Burj Khalifa In Dubai Lit Up With Sri Lankan Flag In Wake of Cyclone Ditwah? No, Viral Social Media Claim Is False

A social media post is going viral claiming to show the façade of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa illuminated with the Sri Lankan flag and the message “Pray for Sri Lanka.” The post alleges that the building was lit up in the colours of the Sri Lankan flag as a gesture of solidarity after the country was recently affected by Cyclone Ditwah.

Instances of the video on TikTok and Facebook can be seen here, here, here, here, and here.

The claim was found to be false. 

Evidence

A keyword search on the search engine Google, with the terms “Burj Khalifa,” “Sri Lanka,” “flag,” and “Ditwah,” did not yield anything relevant. We also checked the social media handles of Burj Khalifa which did not carry any such information either. 

However, we found articles that reported that the Burj Khalifa was lit up with the Lankan flag to celebrate the 75-year anniversary of the country in 2020. A media release that was published in the UAE’s Embassy in Sri Lanka can be seen here. On closely comparing the two, we noticed that the images in the viral video do not resemble the event from 2020. See a comparison below:

Upon probing further, we found a footage from 2019, when the building was lit up with the flag of Sri Lanka to pay respect to the people who were killed during the 2019 Easter Attacks. 

While this appears to match the image in the viral video, upon close inspection we noticed that the orientation of the flag and the background are different. It also does not include the words “Pray for Sri Lanka” in the upper part of the Burj Khalifa. Thus, we concluded that the video is not from the 2019 event either. 

On a closer analysis, we notice that the words “Pray for Sri Lanka” appear in the upper part of the Burj Khalifa in incorrect spellings—’Sri Lanka’ spelled as ‘Sri Larka’. 

Newschecker then analysed some of the keyframes via AI detectors. The video was confirmed to be AI-generated by detection softwares. 

1. WasItAI: “This image or significant part of it, was created by AI”

2. HiveModeration: 96.9% AI-generated or deepfake content

3. SightEngine: 82% AI-generated

Context

From November 26 to 30, Sri Lanka was struck by Cyclone Ditwah, which caused extensive loss of life and widespread damage to infrastructure across the country. Over 600 people have been reported dead, with over 200 reported to be missing, according to the Daily News as of December 12. 

Verdict

Viral video claiming to show the facade of Burj Khalifa in Dubai, being lit with the Sri Lankan flag and the words “Pray for Sri Lanka” in the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah is AI-generated and false. 

FAQs

Q1. What does the viral video show? 
It shows the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, lit up with the Sri Lankan flag and the words “Pray for Sri Lanka”.

Q2. What does the video claim?
It claims that the Burj Khalifa was lit up in this manner to honour the lives lost due to the recent Cyclone Ditwah.

Q3. Was the Burj Khalifa lit up with the Sri Lankan flag soon after Cyclone Ditwah and its floods?
No.

Q4. Was the Burj Khalifa lit up with the words “Pray for Sri Lanka” soon after Cyclone Ditwah and its floods?
No. 

Our Sources

“Dubai’s Burj Khalifa lights up with Sri Lanka flag”, The New Indian Express, published on April 26, 2019
“මියගිය ලාංකිකයන්ට ගෞරවය දක්වන්න ලොව උසම තැනත් එක්වෙයි…” AdaDerana YouTube channel, posted on April 26, 2019
“Burj Khalifa lit up with Sri Lanka’s National Flag”, Embassy of Sri Lanka-Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, published on February 10, 2020
WasItAI
HiveModeration
SightEngine