FACT CHECK: Threads Post Shows Two Different Men, Not Before And After Photos Of Same Palestinian Prisoner

Christine Sellers | Fact Check Reporter

A post shared on Threads claims to show before and after photos of 29-year-old Palestinian man Badr Dahlan, who was purportedly tortured by Israeli soldiers.

 

Post by @rudol9h
View on Threads

 

Verdict: Misleading

The photos show Qusay Salem, a car driver killed during an Israeli airstrike, and Dahlan, a Palestinian man who was detained by Israeli forces for a month, respectively.

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The Threads post, which has received over 200 likes as of writing, claims to show before and after photos of Dahlan, who was purportedly tortured by Israeli soldiers. “This is 29-year-old Palestinian Badr Dahlan. He was once full of life and loved by his community. This is him today, after enduring the trauma of abduction, torture, and brutalization by Israeli soldiers,” the post’s caption reads.

The post features two photos, one of a young man wearing a light gray hat and dark hoodie and the other of a young man dressed in a T-shirt with a short haircut and a scratch on his face.

The claim is misleading. The man in the first photo is Salem, according to a January 7 Instagram post. The post, shared by Salem’s cousin, Hosam states that Qusay was a “car driver ” who’d been “killed by Israeli occupation forces.” In a January 11 Instagram post shared by Hosam, Qusay can be seen wearing the same light gray hat and dark hoodie that is seen in the Threads post.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by ُHosam Salem / حُسام (@hosalem)

Likewise, the second Threads photo does, in fact, show Dahlan. The photo appears to be derived from a June 22 interview Dahlan gave to Al Jazeera detailing his month-long detainment by Israeli forces. Dahlan can be seen beginning at the video’s 1:19-minute mark.

“Israel has detained thousands of Palestinian civilians since the onset of its military operations in Gaza. Among them was Badr Dahlan, who was released after a month in detention. Dahlan says he was subjected to torture during his imprisonment,” the video’s description reads.

Likewise, Check Your Fact did not find any credible news reports to support the claim. In fact, the opposite is true. On June 27, Reuters reported the Threads post was misleading. The outlet cited its own previous reporting as well as a Washington Post article that indicated an Israeli airstrike killed two Palestinian journalists along with Salem, who was driving their car, in Rafah. (RELATED: Viral X Image Does Not Show Israeli Settlers Trying To Tear Palestinian Child Apart)

This is not the first time a misleading claim has circulated online. Check Your Fact previously debunked a video shared on X claiming to show the United States Navy being deployed to respond to Russian warships.

Christine Sellers

Fact Check Reporter

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