Social networks and the media are on fire: There are several accounts circulating online claiming that a famous Arab princess, a pilot in her country's air force, participated in missions to shoot down Iranian missiles and drones launched against her. Israel.

by: the reason

One of the Arab world's main news portals in English, New Arab, published rumors that the Jordanian princess, Salma, not only participated in the operation, but also managed to shoot down five or six drones launched by the Tehran regime.

Tehran's forces fired more than 300 missiles, including cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, against Israel on Saturday evening, in response to the explosion that killed several Iranian military commanders in Damascus, on the first day of April.

The Israeli “multi-layered” air defense system excelled in shooting down 99% of Iranian missiles, with valuable assistance from the American and British forces stationed in the region.

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This is Princess Salma bint Abdullah, Queen of Jordan, a second lieutenant in the Jordanian Air Force, daughter of His Majesty King Abdullah II and Queen Rania.

She is credited with shooting down 6 drones heading to Israel. pic.twitter.com/QmzkknHiov

– David Atherton (@DaveAtherton20) April 15, 2024

Israel was able to contain the storm of missiles thanks to interceptor systems such as David's Sling and Arrow missiles, and pilots who quickly went out in their fighters to shoot down missiles and drones.

But there were other pilots who also took action: pilots of the Royal Jordanian Air Force, which includes Princess Salma bint Abdullah, daughter of King Abdullah II and the popular Queen Rania, and granddaughter of King Hussein.

Salma graduated from the prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the United Kingdom in 2018 and became the first female pilot in the Jordanian Armed Forces.

Fiction or reality?

However, the 23-year-old's involvement in Saturday night's missions turned out to be, like many other princess stories, pure fantasy. At least that's what another Arab portal, Al-Mesbar, said.

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This article claiming that Princess Salma, Queen of Jordan, helped intercept Iranian drones does not exist. It appears to be fabricated based on a previous article. pic.twitter.com/wkLd8cWbqO

—???? ???????? | Fake Reporter (@FakeReporter) April 14, 2024

The “New Arab” platform commented, saying: “I found that there is no reliable information indicating the princess’s participation in the operation and that the image used in social media posts came from an article published in the Emirates Woman magazine” in December 2023.

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