A photograph has recently circulated on social media with the caption, “Breaking News: We have handed over the main file documents and information related to Prime Minister and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina’s departure from the country to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.”

Fact-check

The Rumor Scanner team’s investigation reveals that the circulated image is not related to any event involving the handover of files containing information about Sheikh Hasina’s departure from the country to Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. In reality, the image in question was taken in 2019 during Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Dubai to inspect the site and model design of the upcoming ‘Expo 2020.’ It shows him alongside Reem Al Hashimy, UAE’s Minister of State for International Cooperation.

Upon closer examination, it was found that the image was first shared from a fake Facebook account named ‘Tamanna Akhter Yesman,’ who falsely claimed to be the woman standing beside the Saudi Crown Prince in the photo.

Further investigation led to a report published on November 28, 2019, on the website of Saudi Arabian media outlet Makkah. The image attached to that report matches the one currently being circulated with the misleading claim.

According to that report (translated from Arabic), Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who was then also the Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister of Saudi Arabia, visited the venue and model of ‘Expo 2020’ in Dubai. During this visit, he was accompanied by high-level delegates, including Reem Al Hashimy, the UAE’s Minister of State for International Cooperation and Executive Director of Expo 2020. The image from that visit featuring Mohammed bin Salman and Reem Al Hashimy is the same one now being used in the false claim.

The same image and information can also be found in a separate report published on November 28, 2019, by another Saudi Arabian online news outlet, Sabq.

Previously, a false claim was circulated using a photo of UAE Minister Reem Al Hashimy, alleging that a woman named Tamanna Akhter Yasmin played a significant international role on behalf of the Awami League. Rumor Scanner addressed this misinformation in a fact-check report published on September 15, 2024.

Therefore, the image currently being promoted as depicting the handover of files related to Sheikh Hasina’s departure to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is actually from a 2019 visit by the Crown Prince to the Expo 2020 site in Dubai, where he was accompanied by UAE Minister Reem Al Hashimy. This claim is false.

Original News Source:  https://rumorscanner.com/fact-check/tamanna-akhter-yasmin-meeting-saudi-prince-mohammed-bin-salman/152707