Indian Air Force reacts to pilot in Pak custody claims: 'Baseless and false' | All you need to know about the fake news

The Indian Air Force on Sunday (May 11) dismissed claims of an IAF officer being taken hostage by Pakistan during the recent tensions, labelling them 'baseless and false'.

This comes amid social media claims of an Indian Air Force pilot supposedly named Shivani Singh being captured by Pakistan – fake claims that have already been fact-checked by the Government of India.

Fake claims of IAF pilot capture

As tensions between India and Pakistan reached new heights, a propaganda campaign was spreading on social media platforms like X and Instagram. Among the many pieces of misinformation circulating online was the purported claim of an IAF pilot's capture by Pakistan.

The claims being propagated by pro-Pakistani social media handles were promptly refuted by PIB, the Indian government's nodal agency, for disseminating information to the media.

Indian Female Air Force pilot has NOT been captured🚨

Pro-Pakistan social media handles claim that an Indian Female Air Force pilot, Squadron Leader Shivani Singh, has been captured in Pakistan.#PIBFactCheck

❌ This claim is FAKE!#IndiaFightsPropaganda@MIB_India… pic.twitter.com/V8zovpSRYk

On 10 May 2025, PIB fact-checked the posts, asserting that "This claim is FAKE!". Despite that, a new video of Al Jazeera correspondent Kamal Hyder is now being widely shared, supposedly confirming speculation that Pakistan captured a female Indian Air Force pilot.

Now, breaking silence, the Indian Air Force has responded to the claims, calling them "baseless and false".

India Pakistan Tensions

Indian Air Force dismisses Al Jazeera Story

"Baseless and false", says Indian Air Force on Al Jazeera reporter Kamal Hyder in Islamabad claiming that an Indian Air Force Women pilot has been taken into custody by Pakistan pic.twitter.com/Nf3lwsL65T

Al Jazeera: A history of anti-India narrative?

Previously, too, Al Jazeera has got in trouble because of its dubious narratives and claims on India.

In April 2015, the Al Jazeera TV channel was banned for five days after it broadcast disputed maps of India, in which "a portion of the Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir (i.e. PoK and Aksai Chin) has not been shown as a part of Indian territory" on some Al Jazeera maps; Lakshadweep and the Andaman Islands were also not shown as Indian territories on some of the maps."

At the time, the channel, in a reply to the show cause notice, said that the maps were generated by software used by global news providers. Later, it claimed it was being penalised for a legacy issue since it had abided by the Indian guidelines since 2014.

Subsequently, in June 2023, an Al Jazeera documentary called "India ... Who Lit the Fuse?" was banned by the Allahabad Court, saying it is likely to create hatred amongst different religious denominations and thereby destroy the secular fabric of India.

Watch | Fake News Alert: No Indian Air Force woman pilot captured by Pakistan | India-Pakistan War