ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Economic Affairs of Pakistan has confirmed that its official X (formerly Twitter) account was hacked on Thursday night.
This follows a post that appeared on the account appealing to international partners for more loans, citing heavy losses and escalating tensions with India.
In a post on X, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Fact Checker shared a picture of the post and mentioned that it was “fake.” It also claimed, “The account was hacked.”
The ministry has stated that any posts made on X since the hacking are not connected with them and that they are working to regain control of the account.
Shahbaz Rana also posted on Twitter.
News agency Reuters reported that the now-deleted post on the hacked X account read:
“Govt of Pakistan appeals to International Partners for more loans after heavy losses inflicted by the enemy. Amid escalating war and stocks crash, we urge international partners to help de-escalate. Nation urged to remain steadfast.”
The ministry also told Reuters that they “did not tweet” the post and were working to have the account switched off.
The incident occurs amidst already heightened tensions between Pakistan and India, exacerbated by the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 people, mostly male tourists, were killed.