The political crisis between Morocco and Spain caused by the hospitalization of the leader of the separatist movement, Brahim Ghali, has given rise to a strange theory on social media. Has Brahim Ghali rejuvenated after catching Covid-19 ? Did he inject botox to look younger ? These are the questions that we are entitled to ask following the emergence of a series of posts on social media attributing revelations to the Moroccan secret services. According to the theories advanced by many Moroccans sharing on social media what they believe to be a recent photo of the Polisario leader revamped, while he is hospitalized on the sly at Logroño hospital in Spain. To them, the 75-year-old leader of the separatist movement has shaved his gray mustache and colored his hair to appear younger to go incognito. In short, a strange story of Benjamin Button boosted by make-up techniques. In barely 24 hours, this story went viral on social media with comments, likes and shares. If this rude manipulation has succeeded in bypassing the brains of tens of thousands of people, it is useful to adopt an educational approach by answering 3 questions. Why would the Polisario need to make such a bad job (since Brahim Ghali is still recognizable), when their leader was admitted with a false identity to the hospital ? He was not trying to escape the Spanish intelligence services since he was covered by the Sanchez government. And by being admitted to Covid+ intensive care, he is isolated and is not at risk of going out for a walkabout at the weekly market in Logroño. A Covid-19 patient who is rejuvenating ? Brahim Ghali was urgently admitted to this hospital in Spain because his condition was considered worrying by Algerian doctors. In this kind of situation, it is not the time for hair coloring or makeup to hide wrinkles. We could add that several weeks of a pulmonary infection and intensive care in a Covid-19 unit have very likely had visible effects on his physique : thinness, emaciated face, feverish state. But in the photo, we see a man who seems in good shape and would have even rejuvenated. His wrinkles have disappeared and his baldness too. What if it was an old photo of Brahim Ghali ? After the doubt and logical reasoning, let's move to debunking the manipulation. Has Brahim Ghali always had a mustache? We will be using Google images through two methods. First, by searching the photo on the left : Brahim Ghali without a mustache. We come across a similar photo where he wears the same polo shirt. The article is very recent, published on 05/18/2021 but the caption does date the photo. However, we agree that if the goal was to be incognito, it is not very smart to pose for a newspaper shoot. We continue on Google Images by searching for 'Brahim Ghali' in French then in Arabic to find photos that we can date precisely. The majority of the photos found on the Internet are recent and with mustaches. But older photos without a mustache and much thicker and darker hair can be found. Two very similar photos attract our attention since they were taken by EFE, whose archive services indicate the exact date of the day the image was taken. Thus, the mustache-free period is in the early 2000s. Conclusion We therefore have proof that the picture montage only manipulated us by wanting to crudely pass the old photo for a new one. Because «we only believe what we see», we tend to trust the image too much and especially the meaning that the one who publishes it wants to give it. This is how some try to hack our brains. To protect ourselves, methodically doubting and asking the right questions are two necessary steps but not sufficient. They should lead us to the verification stage. For that sake, Google Images, Search, Maps, but also YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn are very powerful tools which are at your disposal. Other solutions for more journalistic use like InVid (to check the age of a video) can prove highly valuable. Media education and vigilance in the face of manipulative content must be part of our daily lives so as not to be misled.
