Misinformation Follows Deadly Qatari Delegation Car Crash

On October 11, a car carrying members of the Qatari delegation's protocol team overturned on a curve about 50 kilometers from Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Three Qatari officials were killed in the accident, and two were injured. The accident happened as the group was traveling to prepare for a high-level international peace summit aimed at finalizing the Gaza ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel.

The accident, which was described as a “tragic traffic accident,” was soon followed by a surge of misinformation online.

2024 Photo Falsely Linked to the Accident

A photo claiming to show a white vehicle overturned in the mountains went viral online, with claims that it shows a vehicle belonging to members of the Qatari delegation in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Misbar investigated the photo and found that it dates back to 2024. Reverse image search led to a photo published by a Palestinian local website called Akka Net in August 2024. According to that report, the photo showed a car accident involving a family from Umm al-Fahm on the route to Karm El Sheikh.

Only Three Were Killed in the Car Accident

Social media users also alleged that four Qatari diplomats were killed in the crash.

However, these claims are misleading. The Qatari Embassy in Cairo confirmed that three members of the Amiri Diwan were killed, not four. In its statement following the car accident, the Qatari Embassy in Cairo expressed its sorrow over the death of three members of the Amiri Diwan.

The statement named the officials involved in the accident: Saud bin Thamer Al Thani, Abdullah Ghanem Al-Khiyarain, Hassan Jaber Al-Jaber, Abdullah Issa Al-Kuwari, and Mohammed Abdulaziz Al-Buainain. Of these five, three died and two were injured.

2023 Image of Car Accident Falsely Embedded As 

Users and some media outlets shared another photo of a damaged white car, claiming it depicts the Qatari delegation's car.

However, this image is also unrelated to the incident. The delegation’s car was not white. Al Arabiya shared a photo of the delegation’s car on its Instagram page. The car’s color was black, not white, as the claim suggested.

Misbar’s investigation traced the photo back to 2023. The Israeli news outlet Kan featured the photo in a 2023 report on a car accident that involved three vehicles near the Beit Arava settlement in the West Bank.

Qatari Delegation Car Accident

The accident occurred amid heightened diplomatic efforts to finalize a ceasefire in Gaza. According to Al Jazeera and Reuters, the Qatari delegation had been traveling from Cairo toward Sharm el-Sheikh to assist in logistical preparations for a high-level summit expected to include Egyptian, Qatari, Turkish, and U.S. officials. The talks aimed to finalize the framework for a truce and a potential hostage–prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas.

Sources familiar with the matter clarified that those killed were security personnel, protocol officers, and support staff, not the core negotiation team.

The Sharm el-Sheikh summit was slated to bring together heads of state and international leaders — including Egypt’s president and the U.S. president — to formalize the ceasefire framework and oversee the exchange of hostages and prisoners.

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