A widely shared Facebook graphic falsely attributed a comment about India’s protests to Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath. The minister’s office denied the quote and investigators found the image credited a non-existent outlet, "Lanka X News."
What Happened
On July 23, 2026, a Sinhala-language image circulated on Facebook that purported to quote Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath saying: "We are closely monitoring the situation in India, but we have no intention of intervening. Our experience is that major crises can arise from struggles." The post used a photograph of Herath and was labeled with the name and URL of a purported news organisation, "Lanka X News" (shown as www.lankaXnews.lk).
Screenshots of the search engine results
Verification And Findings
AFP researchers found no evidence that a legitimate Sri Lanka-based news outlet operates under the name "Lanka X News." Reverse-image and keyword searches returned no results for the website URL displayed on the graphic, and search-engine queries produced no credible matches for the outlet.
Official Denial: Sakeef Sam, a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath, told AFP on July 28, 2026: "We can confirm that the minister has not made such a statement or similar remarks anywhere or in any media."
The photograph used in the fabricated graphic was taken from the minister’s official Facebook page; it was originally posted on March 18, 2026, showing Herath speaking at a local tourism platform launch in Colombo. AFP published the original photo alongside the fake graphic to demonstrate how the image had been repurposed.
Screenshot of the false Facebook post (L) and the photograph posted on the minister's Facebook page in March 2026
Context
The fake graphic spread as thousands of protesters gathered in New Delhi demanding the resignation of India’s Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and broader education reforms. The protests later widened to include grievances over unemployment, opportunities for young people and criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governing style. Pradhan resigned on July 25, 2026.
Some social media users interpreted the fabricated quote as evidence that the Sri Lankan government feared unrest might spread across the Palk Strait and destabilise the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), the party that led violent uprisings in the 1970s and 1980s before renouncing violence and winning power in 2024.
Impact And Spread
The false post was shared across public Facebook groups totalling more than 200,000 members. Misinformation that reuses official photos and invents outlet labels can be especially convincing; in this case the combination of a real photograph and a fabricated news brand lent undue credibility to the claim.
Takeaway
Independent verification—reverse-image searches, checks of newsroom registries and direct confirmation from officials—helped expose the graphic as fabricated. AFP has previously debunked similar false claims targeting Sri Lankan government ministers.
