An edited picture of Egypt's Giza Pyramids lit up in the Lebanese coat of arms has gone viral following recent explosions that rocked the city of Beirut in Lebanon, causing at least 200 deaths and over 7,000 injuries.
However, the viral image is actually an old picture from April that has been photoshopped. Further, Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has denied the claim that the Giza Pyramids were lit to show solidarity with Lebanon.
CLAIM
The picture was tweeted by Egyptian online magazine, DNE Buzz (@Dnebuzz) with the claim, "Egypt's Giza pyramids were illuminated on Tuesday night with colours of Lebanon."
Several social media users tweeted the image including Egypt’s 104.2 Nile FM.
It was also reported by media outlets like Saudi Arabia's daily, Arab News, German public international broadcaster, Deutsche Welle, Indian national daily, The Indian Express and media house India Today.
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WHAT WE FOUND OUT
The Lebanese colours have been photoshopped onto a picture of the Giza pyramids from April this year.
A reverse image search with the keywords, "Giza Pyramids Light Up" led us to news reports from April showing Egypt's message to stay home during the coronavirus pandemic.
The article attributed the images to news agency AFP, which also reported on the incident.
A second reverse image search with the pyramids lit up in blue, led us to the original picture posted by Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities on 18 April.
Posted by Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities وزارة السياحة والآثار on Saturday, April 18, 2020
A comparison of the viral image and the image shared by the ministry clearly shows that the Lebanese flag was photoshopped onto the "Experience Egypt Soon" message.
The clouds in the night sky and the city lights in the background are exactly the same in both the images.
AFP’s fact-check article mentioned that the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has denied lighting up the Giza Pyramids in the light of the recent Beirut blasts.
“This news is not true,” a source at the ministry told an AFP reporter.
MONUMENTS ACROSS THE WORLD SHOW SOLIDARITY
While the Giza Pyramids did not light up after the Beirut blasts, other monuments across the world showed their solidarity.
Dubai's Burj Khalifa was lit up on 5 August to express "condolences to our beloved people in Lebanon!"
تعازينا لأهلنا في لبنان الحبيبة! اللهم ارحم من انتقلوا إليك.. اللهم الطف بأهلها.. اللهم ألهم شعب لبنان الصبر والسلوان#BurjKhalifa lights up in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in #Lebanon pic.twitter.com/VRR00hXiUM
— Burj Khalifa (@BurjKhalifa) August 4, 2020
Brazil's iconic Christ the Redeemer was also lit up on 7 August with the Lebanon flag.
Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro was lit up with the flag of Lebanon pic.twitter.com/Zu6anV7P3e
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 7, 2020
The Eiffel Tower in Paris, too, went dark on 5 August. The official twitter handle (@LaTourEiffel) stated, "To show solidarity to the people of Beirut and Lebanon, I will turn off my lights at midnight."
Par solidarité envers la population de #Beyrouth et du #Liban, je m'éteindrai ce soir à minuit
— La tour Eiffel (@LaTourEiffel) August 5, 2020
To show solidarity to the people of #Beirut and #Lebanon, I will turn off my lights at midnight pic.twitter.com/6WSIQA8UiJ
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Evidently, the viral image of the Giza Pyramids showing support to Lebanon has been photoshopped.
People across the world expressed their support for Beirut on social media. The Lebanese government was forced to resign due to violent protests over its negligence.
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