Amid the escalating Pakistan–Afghanistan border tensions, a video circulating on social media has been widely shared with claims that Afghan forces shot down a Pakistani Air Force F-16 fighter jet. However, the footage has turned out to be fake and likely made with the help of AI tools.
Visual analysis indicates the footage itself is likely genuine but modified with the help of AI.
The video shows burning aircraft wreckage at night bearing Pakistani markings and the tail number “85510”. But social media users have noted that the aircraft’s size and structure do not match an F-16 fighter jet.
The serial number also does not correspond to known Pakistani F-16 inventories.
PAKISTAN STRIKES AFGHANISTAN
Pakistan carried out overnight strikes inside Afghanistan’s major cities, including the capital Kabul, as cross-border fighting surged into one of the most serious confrontations between the two neighbours in months.
A Pakistani government spokesperson said 133 Taliban fighters were killed, more than 200 wounded, and dozens of posts destroyed or captured. The Taliban, meanwhile, claimed 55 Pakistani soldiers were killed.
The figures, however, are yet to be verified.
Pakistani security officials said air and ground operations targeted Taliban positions, headquarters and ammunition depots across multiple sectors along the frontier.
Taliban authorities, however, said Pakistani aircraft struck areas of Kabul, Kandahar and Paktia.
The latest strikes follow Pakistani air raids earlier this week that Islamabad said targeted TTP and Islamic State camps in eastern Afghanistan.
Taliban officials had warned of retaliation, and clashes intensified on Thursday night when Taliban forces said they attacked Pakistani military positions along the border.
