'What does Paris have to do with 9/11': Pakistan Airlines' Paris ad sparks outrage on social media

There is a saying, "A picture is worth thousand words". Sometimes, pictures cam speak volumes which even words fail to. Recently, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) discovered this the hard way as their advertisement, expected to promote a significant milestone, ended up creating an unexpected buzz on social media. 

The PIA, in a post on 'X', announced the airlines would soon be resuming flight services between Islamabad and Paris. It also shared a picture, showcasing an airplane heading towards Paris, with the iconic Eiffel tower featured in the background. 

pic.twitter.com/qUoNCyL385

— PIA (@Official_PIA) January 10, 2025

And this was the root cause for a heated social media discussions and criticism. 

The post was captioned, "Paris, we are coming today", marking the relaunch of fights between the two citties on January 10, 2025. 

How did netizens react?

The post got viral on social media in no time. Netizens were quick to compare the post with one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in the history - 9/11. Four coordinated attacks by terrorist outfit Al-Qaeda against the US shocked the world, with visuals of planes crashing into the World Trade Centre forever etched into collective memory. For many, the memory is still raw, reminding them of the destruction of lives and properties caused due to the attack. 

“I’m literally looking at this thinking ‘What does Paris have to do with 9/11?’" an user commented. 

Another user wrote, "Non-American graphic designer". A third pointed out at the possibility that the graphic designer is born after 2001, unaware of such historical events. 

"Graphic designer definitely born post-2001", he wrote.