Top News

New Delhi: It seems controversy and Pakistani politics truly go hand in hand as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is back in the spotlight again, this time facing a wave of mockery over his 'Draft' tweet blunder.

A social media firestorm has hit Sharif following a post on X (formerly Twitter) made just before Donald Trump’s ceasefire announcement, raising questions over how Pakistan is positioning itself in the Iran crisis.
 

While the final post called for a "peaceful settlement" between the U.S. and Iran, eagle-eyed users discovered an earlier, edited version of the tweet. This original draft reportedly included a stray phrase- "Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X" leading many to mock the Prime Minister for what appeared to be a clumsy "copy-paste" error by his communications team.

What the post read?

“Diplomatic efforts for peaceful settlement of the ongoing war in the Middle East are progressing steadily, strongly and powerfully with the potential to lead to substantive results in near future. To allow diplomacy to run its course, I earnestly request President Trump to extend the deadline for two weeks. Pakistan, in all sincerity, requests the Iranian brothers to open Strait of Hormuz for a corresponding period of two weeks as a goodwill gesture. We also urge all warring parties to observe a ceasefire everywhere for two weeks to allow diplomacy to achieve conclusive termination of war, in the interest of long-term peace and stability in the region,” tweeted Shehbaz Sharif on April 8.

'Edited post row"

Public attention quickly turned to the tweet's "Edit history," which revealed a potentially embarrassing slip-up. The original version of the post included a stray internal heading: “Draft - Pakistan’s PM Message on X,” timestamped just one minute before the final version was published.

Screenshots of this unedited draft have since gone viral, sparking a wave of online debate. While some users are mocking the move as a clumsy "copy-paste" error by the Prime Minister's communications team, others are questioning the level of external influence or scripted coordination behind Pakistan's diplomatic messaging.

Field day for netizens?

The social media response has been a mix of scrutiny and sarcasm, with several users finding humor in the gaffe. One commenter bluntly told the Prime Minister to "Learn to post properly first," while another pointed to the incident as "Another prime example of why you should be checking before copying and pasting things."

Another user went further, alleging that “Donald Trump is controlling Pakistan” and that the message was a pre-prepared draft sent for posting- claims that remain unverified.

'Just embarrassing'

Another posted, “This isn't some grand conspiracy, it's just embarrassing incompetence. The edit history proves they copied and pasted an entire draft without basic proofreading. Governments worldwide make mistakes, but when your PM’s official statement on war and deadlines has it, it raises serious questions about message discipline and staff quality.” 

Another user expressed, “Bro is doing a copy-paste job being PM of Pakistan.”

Another user on X questioned why the initial version of the tweet included draft notes, referred to the prime minister in English, and described him as “Pakistan’s PM.”

Pakistan as a bridge

Notably, Pakistan has positioned itself as a go-between in the ongoing crisis, relaying proposals between Washington and Tehran. However, no breakthrough has been announced so far.

President Trump officially confirmed on Tuesday that the United States has entered into a two-week ceasefire agreement with Iran. In his announcement, he specifically credited the mediation efforts of Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir for helping to avert a massive military escalation.

Following this development, Prime Minister Sharif announced that Pakistan will act as the host for formal diplomatic talks between the US and Iran, scheduled to begin in Islamabad on April 10.

As scrutiny grows over the edited post, the episode has added a new layer of controversy to Pakistan’s role in the high-stakes diplomatic push, even as tensions in the region continue to escalate.