A video from Sudan is viral with a false claim that it shows damage to the Nur Khan airbase in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, following Indian military strikes as part of Operation Sindoor.
On May 10, 2025, India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire, subsequently resuming military strikes with both countries accusing each other of violating the agreement to halt all military action.
In a recent press briefing, the Indian Army confirmed targetting Pakistan’s Nur Khan Airbase in Rawalpindi as part of the ongoing Operation Sindoor.
The video is being shared on X with the caption: “Pakistan’s Noor Khan Airbase. As per the shared video, the damage is huge.” In the footage, several destroyed planes can be seen on the tarmac.
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FACT-CHECK
BOOM found that the viral video is from Sudan's Khartoum International Airport and not from Pakistan's Nur Khan Airbase in Rawalpindi.
We ran a reverse image search on video keyframes and found that the video dates back to at least March 2025, predating the ongoing Operation Sindoor and the Indian strike on Nur Khan Airbase this month.
We found a longer video, of around 4.49 minutes posted on YouTube on April 2, 2025 with the caption, "status of khartoum airport after it was vandalized by rsf fighters".
In the longer version of the video, we found several clues confirming that the video shows the Khartoum International Airport in Sudan.
We found the name Tarco written on a structure on the airport and traced it back to a Sudanese airline with the same name. We also noticed 'Sudan' written on one of the tail wings of a stationary plane seen in the video.
We found the earliest post with the video, on an Instagram post from March 31, 2025.
Further we found several reports from March 26, 2025 about the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) expelling the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) from most of Khartoum, including the airport and the presidential palace. The reports said the battle between the SAF and RSF began on April 15, 2023 with visuals showing the SAF taking control of the airport again.
Additionally, BOOM reached out to Benjamin Strick, an expert in open-source investigations, who geo-located the viral video to Khartoum International Airport. His analysis shows a destroyed plane that was intact in satellite imagery from November 30, 2024.
By February 2025, the same plane appears damaged, indicating that the viral video was likely filmed sometime after November 30, 2024. A visual comparison can be seen below:
BOOM was unable to independently verify the incident in the viral video, However, we were able to confirm that the location is Khartoum International Airport, and not Pakistan’s Nur Khan Airbase.