Inqilab and Ajker Dainik use AI image for Saudi airport attack
Daily Inqilab and Ajker Dainik used a photo in their reports on an attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on a Saudi Arabian airport. However, Dismislab’s fact-check found that the photo used was created using artificial intelligence (AI), but no disclaimer was found in the photo caption or the story.
On October 8, a photo card was posted on Daily Inqilab’s verified Facebook page. The photo shows fire burning at an airport, with black smoke rising and fire service vehicles attempting to extinguish the blaze nearby. The card read, “Houthi attack on two Saudi airports, 36 casualties including foreign nationals” (verbatim). Daily Inqilab used the same photo in its report as well.
On October 6, news outlet Ajker Dainik published a report using the same photo, headlined, “Houthi Attack on Saudi Airport, Claim of Counter-Advance in Bab al-Mandeb.”
To verify the photo, Dismislab conducted a reverse image search, which found a report published in Bangladesh Pratidin on August 4 (2026), headlined, “Houthi Rebels Attack Saudi Arabian Airport.” The caption beneath the photo read, “AI-generated symbolic image.” This photo matched exactly with the photo used in the reports by Daily Inqilab and Ajker Dainik.
For further verification, the photo was examined using Google’s SynthID verification tool, which detected a SynthID digital watermark signal in the image. This means the photo was wholly or partially created or edited using Google’s AI. For additional confirmation, an examination using the AI detection tool Hive Moderation showed a 99.9 percent probability that the image was AI-generated.
In other words, the photo used by Inqilab and Ajker Dainik in their coverage of the attack on the Saudi airport is AI-generated.
It is worth noting that, citing the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation, Pakistan’s Express Tribune, Turkey’s Yeni Şafak, and aviation news outlet AirTime reported that attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and an airport in Abha on October 6 and 7 killed three people and injured 36.
International Media Guidelines on Using AI-Generated Images
UK broadcaster Channel 4 has published editorial guidelines on AI for its content. The guidelines state that synthetic media that could mislead viewers is prohibited from being used without a label. AI must not be used to misrepresent or distort reality. Creating fabricated quotes, footage, or events using AI is also prohibited.
According to the BBC’s editorial guidelines on AI use, generative AI must not be used to directly create news content in BBC News, current affairs, or factual journalism. The sole exception is when AI itself is the subject of the news. This part of the guidelines has been cited in a research briefing for the UK Parliament. One of the three core principles governing the use of generative AI is transparency and accountability. The guidelines state that viewers and readers must be informed when AI is involved, and that it must also be explained why and how AI was used.
