2019 pictures of an Iraqi photographer falsely linked to the recent clashes at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
May 14, 2021
A collage with a group of images is being shared on social media claiming it as visuals of a photographer shedding tears while capturing pictures at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. In the wake of recent clashes between the Israeli forces and Palestinian protestors at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, these images are being shared on social media. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: Images of a photographer shedding tears while capturing the pictures at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
Fact: These pictures show an Iraqi photographer crying behind the camera after his team was knocked out of the AFC Asia Cup 2019. This photo has nothing to do with recent clashes between Israeli police forces and Palestinian protestors at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
On reverse image search of the photos shared in the post, similar pictures were found shared in a tweet by ‘Lovin Dubai’ media company on 29 January 2019.  This tweet described these as the pictures of an Iraqi photographer crying behind the camera after his team was knocked out of the AFC Asian Cup 2019.
A picture that captures the emotion of football. This Iraqi photographer is seen crying behind the camera as his team were knocked out of the Asian Cup in the UAE this week #AsianCup #AFCAsianCup2019 pic.twitter.com/tprpGgroAq
When we searched for more information related to these pictures, we found a similar picture in a tweet by the AFC Asian Cup official Twitter handle on 24 January 2019. Sharing the photo, this tweet mentioned it as the passionate and emotional moment of an Iraqi photographer during the AFC Asian Cup 2019 tournament, held in UAE. AFC Asian Cup officials shared the same photo on their official Facebook page.
Passionate. Emotional moment for an Iraqi photographer during the Round of 16 clash against 🇶🇦 ! #AsianCup2019 pic.twitter.com/KZoXsp1N4U
News articles published about this Iraqi photographer shedding tears after his team was knocked out of the AFC Asian Cup 2019 can be seen here and here. From all these pieces of evidence, it can be concluded that the pictures shared in the post are not related to the recent clashes at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
Earlier, when the same group of images was shared as a photographer’s reaction after the former India captain MS Dhoni was out during the 2019 World Cup Semifinal, FACTLY published a fact-check article on it. It can be read here.
On 07 May 2021, Israeli police forces fired rubber bullets and stun grenades towards Palestinian protestors at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Amid the growing tensions on potential eviction of Palestinians from homes on the land claimed by Israelis, Israeli police used force to restore order in East Jerusalem. According to the media reports, more than 300 Palestinian protestors were injured during these clashes.
To sum it up, 2019 pictures of an Iraqi photographer crying behind the camera is falsely linked to the recent clashes at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.