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Russia's Claim That Photo Shows 'Dirty Bomb' in Ukraine

Russia’s Claim That Photo Shows ‘Dirty Bomb’ in Ukraine

The images in the graphic, shared by the Russian Ministry of Defence, are not of a Ukrainian dirty bomb facility or evidence of the creation of a dirty bomb. Some are photos of Russian and Siberian research facilities. Another, according to the Slovenian government, is from a 2010 Radioactive Waste Management presentation by a Slovenian non-profit. One of the images has been used several times over on different websites since 2010.

No, Ukraine does not have nuclear bombs or “dirty bombs”

Ukraine does not have a nuclear bomb or a "dirty bomb," according to experts and watchdogs. The country used to have Soviet-era nuclear weapons but returned them to Russia after the Soviet Union collapsed. Ukraine also dismantled or destroyed its nuclear missiles and silos. Its nuclear materials are now used for peaceful purposes. Experts and watchdogs say Ukraine has neither a nuclear bomb nor a "dirty bomb." Ukraine used to have nuclear weapons but it transferred them to Russia after the Soviet Union collapsed and dismantled or destroyed its nuclear missiles and silos. The nation's nuclear materials are now used for peaceful purposes. We rate the post False.
Is Red Cross Funding Families of Mobilized Russians?

Is Red Cross Funding Families of Mobilized Russians?

As stated on its website the Russian Red Cross, an organization making up the international network of Red Cross societies, has been fundraising and providing support for Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine and their families. However, this does not mean that other Red Cross societies or its international organizing bodies have any part in its fundraising. The International Federation of Red Cross says it is guided by "impartiality", among its guiding principles.

Video clips mischaracterized as showing fake Ukraine war footage

A recent Instagram post sharing a TikTok video issues a "wake up call," purportedly pointing to several clips as evidence that scenes of war in Ukraine have been staged. Using reverse image searches and InVid, a site that helps identify the origins of video clips, we found the ones featured in the Instagram post, and neither is meant to show real footage of the war in Ukraine. Those claims were wrong, and so is this one. We rate the claim that these clips show fake war footage in Ukraine Pants on Fire.

CNN didn’t report that Uganda’s president said it would be ‘disgusting’ to support Ukraine

Uganda's president came out as an early supporter of russia but this is not a real CNN headline. The post appears to be an altered screenshot of a 2014 story on CNN's website. The story features a paused video of Museveni in which he appears wearing the same outfit and in front of the same background as the image of him in the Instagram post. We found no credible news reports or other sources documenting Museveni as saying it would be disgusting to support Ukraine. We rate that claim False.

Were these Ukrainians staging a fake battle scene? Nope, it’s a music video

Pro-Russian social media accounts have been widely circulating a video over the past few weeks that shows a man dressed as a Ukrainian soldier acting out a scene in front of a camera. These accounts have claimed this video is proof that people are staging scenes of the war in Ukraine. Turns out, however, the video was filmed during the shooting of a music video by a Ukrainian artist whose music represents the "pain of war".

Photo of Zelenskyy holding a jersey with a swastika was altered

This photo was altered. In the original, Zelenskyy is holding a jersey that has the number 95, not a swastika. The original image was distributed by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service in June 2021. According to a caption on Agence France-Presse's website, it shows him "posing with a jersey of Ukraine's national football team." Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has pushed the idea that the effort is one of "denazification," a narrative historians have decried as "false and destructive." We rate claims Zelenskyy was holding a jersey with a swastika False.
Did Fuel Crisis Force Berliners to Chop Trees in Tiergarten?

Did Fuel Crisis Force Berliners to Chop Trees in Tiergarten?

Germans have not been chopping down trees in Tiergarten, Berlin, to meet energy needs. The claim is a misquote from a Bloomberg article about firewood demand. While the article mentions that residents in the German capital did resort to felling parts of the park after the Second World War, the article clearly states that no such thing has happened today following Russia's shutdown of gas supplies to Europe. The misquote, however, has been widely shared by pro-Russian accounts to support their narrative about the energy crisis in Europe.

Social media post critical of Zelenskyy came from Kid Rock fan account, not the artist

A screenshot of a Gettr post critical of U.S. foreign aid to Ukraine has been attributed to Kid Rock, but it originated on a fan account. We couldn't find a Gettr account for Kid Rock, and it's not listed among the social media accounts on his website. Kid Rock's website links to his YouTube account and his verified Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts. We've previously debunked claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy owns a $35 million home in Florida. We couldn't find any credible sources to corroborate the claim in this Gettr post, either. As for the claim that Kid Rock authored it, we rate that False.