Fact Check: Did Princess Salma Of Jordan Shoot Down Iran Drones?

In 2020, a 23-year-old woman became the first female pilot in her country’s history, serving in the Royal Jordanian Air Force. However, a widely circulated viral post on social media claiming that she shot down 6 Iranian drones has been debunked as misleading. This erroneous claim was accompanied by a photo of the young woman in a Jordanian air force pilot uniform.

It has been confirmed that the photo in question is from 2023, as reported by various news articles from the previous year. In response to the viral posts, X (formerly known as Twitter) added a Community Note to provide context and fact-check the misleading claim. According to the Community Note, the original article headline from December 15, 2023, reads “Princess Salma of Jordan leads Air Force initiative to airdrop medical supplies in Gaza.”

The note highlighted that propagandists are circulating digitally altered news articles to promote their agenda amid the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran. In December of the prior year, Princess Salma was part of a mission to airlift aid to a hospital in Gaza. As a first lieutenant in the Royal Jordanian Air Force, she participated in dropping aid to a 41-bed Jordanian field hospital in northern Gaza.

This underscores her actual involvement in humanitarian efforts rather than the false claim regarding shooting down drones. This clarification serves to dispel the misleading information and highlight Princess Salma’s genuine contributions as a pioneering female pilot in her country.