Fact-check: Does this picture show parts of Juba?

No, this picture is of Khartoum, the capital of Sudan

Writer: Nancy Ceasar

A picture of a highway and urban buildings shared on Facebook purporting to show parts of Juba, the capital of South Sudan, is misleading. 

This claim had attracted over 3000 interactions at the time of publishing.

Investigation:

211 Check carried out a Google reverse image search on the picture, and the results showed that the picture has been used by different people in reference to Sudan in the past.

In one instance, a Facebook post with the same image encouraged the people of Sudan to preserve their country.

 “O my people in Sudan, O messengers of love, saints, pure righteous, this is your country; each piece of it belongs to your hearts; raise it high; this is your land, and you are its soldiers; do not let it get lost in your hands; every Arab and African in this existence is grateful to it, in its bows great grace, kneaded with the generosity of your hearts and generosity of your minds…” reads part of the post. 

The image was also shared on Twitter with a tweet that reads, in part:  

 “These are the people who live in Khartoum, for the people who drink morning tea with dumplings on Nile Street, next to Al Dayat or Central Station.  Bahri, for people who break their fast in Awadiya samak or wahhab or jamui foul fareed or Abdel wahhdah or Al shaeqi for lovers of prince Al shatby, Dodi, fwal al hijra…”

Further, SkyScraperCity, an online tabloid, on 17 September 2022 published an article with the title ‘Khartoum and Omdurman | Sudan | City Gallery’ where the image we are fact-checking was featured with the caption ‘Northern Sudanese.’

Sudan, whose capital is Khartoum, is officially known as the Republic of Sudan and borders the Red Sea to the north. It was the largest and one of Africa’s most geographically diverse states until it split into two countries in 2011, with South Sudan voting for independence.

On the other hand, South Sudan, whose capital is Juba, gained independence from Sudan on 9 July 2011, making it the most recent sovereign state or country with widespread recognition as of 2023. It includes the vast swamp region of the Sudd, formed by the white Nile, known locally as Bahr-al-Jebel, meaning “Mountain River. 

Conclusion:

211 Check has found that an image making rounds claiming to show Juba, South Sudan, is false and misleading. The picture is of Khartoum, the capital of Sudan.

This fact check was published by 211 Check with support from Code for Africa’s PesaCheck and African Fact-Checking Alliance.

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