Category Context

These images from Bucha do not show ‘fake corpses’ staged by the Ukrainian army

Images published on April 3 showed the bodies of more than a dozen civilians who had been killed in Bucha, a town near Kyiv that had been occupied by the Russian army. Some of the bodies had their hands tied and some were shot in the head. Since then, several Russian media outlets and pro-Russian social media accounts have published a video that claims to show evidence the corpses in this video were staged. The FRANCE 24 Observers team analysed its claims.

Read MoreThese images from Bucha do not show ‘fake corpses’ staged by the Ukrainian army
Fact-checking Russian disinformation about Bucha’s massacre

Fact-checking Russian disinformation about Bucha’s massacre

Journalists who were able to reach Bucha after the departure of the Russian troops witnessed streets lined with abandoned corpses, some of which showed signs of summary executions, such as hands tied behind their backs, and clearly visible bullet holes marking their bodies.

These pitiless reports led Ukrainian authorities and international analysts to accuse Russia of war crimes, but as soon as disturbing videos and pictures of the massacre started spreading online, Russian authorities denied the allegations, claiming that the pictures were a “provocation” and “a staged performance” organized by Ukrainian forces “for the Western media”. As already happened after the bombing of the pediatric hospital in Mariupol, Russia started a massive disinformation campaign in order to deny the massacre through the exploitation of conspiracy theories circulating online.

Read MoreFact-checking Russian disinformation about Bucha’s massacre

Russia pushes false crisis actor claims about video from Bucha, Ukraine

The Russian Ministry of Defense and other top Russian officials claimed that a video of a car driving through Ukraine showed two crisis actors playing the role of dead Ukrainians in a staged massacre. On Telegram and Twitter, they claimed that the video showed one person moving their arm, and another person seen in the car's mirror sitting up.

The video does not show a person raising an arm as the car drives by; it shows a mark floating across the car's windshield ' perhaps a drop of water or a speck of dirt.

The video does not show someone sitting up after the car drives by; it shows a stationary corpse through the lens of the car's passenger-side mirror, which has distorting effects.

Our ruling
The Russian Ministry of Defense said a video taken from a car driving through Bucha, Ukraine, shows a corpse "moving his arm," and then "in the rear view mirror the 'corpse' sits down."

Both claims misrepresent what the video in question shows.

The video shows a mark floating across the car's windshield ' perhaps a drop of water or a speck of dirt ' which Russia officials falsely portrayed as of a corpse "moving his arm."

Similarly, what Russian officials falsely claimed was a corpse sitting up was actually a dead person whose body appeared distorted due to the shape of the car's passenger-side mirror.

We rate this claim False.

Read MoreRussia pushes false crisis actor claims about video from Bucha, Ukraine

Ukraine: Russian troops flying Soviet flag, symbol of ‘re-establishing Russian domination’

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, thousands of images showing Russian soldiers and vehicles have emerged online. Some of these images shocked viewers when they saw the flag of the Soviet Union waving on some Russian military equipment. For residents of Ukraine, a former part of the Soviet Union, the flag may represent "an expression of a desire to repress them", according to a post-Soviet politics specialist who spoke to the FRANCE 24 Observers team.

Read MoreUkraine: Russian troops flying Soviet flag, symbol of ‘re-establishing Russian domination’

Pictures of Ukrainians throwing Molotov cocktails taken during anti-government protests in 2014

Social media posts shared hundreds of times show photos of people lobbing Molotov cocktails against a backdrop of flames. They claim the pictures show Ukrainians targeting Russian tanks invading the country. While Ukrainians have been making Molotov cocktails in response to the Russian invasion, the photos were taken as anti-government protests swept the capital Kyiv in 2014.

Read MorePictures of Ukrainians throwing Molotov cocktails taken during anti-government protests in 2014

Fact check: Russia falsely blames Ukraine for starting war

“Maria Zakharova's claim that Ukraine started this war is false. The Russian Federation illegally annexed the Crimean Peninsula in 2014, sparking broad international condemnation. On February 21, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine from the north, northeast, and from the Crimean Peninsula in the south, initiating a full-scale interstate war between Russia and Ukraine”.

Read MoreFact check: Russia falsely blames Ukraine for starting war

Old image shows Ukrainians praying to mark 2014 separatist attacks, unrelated to current conflict

Facebook posts are circulating in Africa claiming to feature an image of Ukrainians kneeling and praying in the snow days before Russian troops invaded their country on February 24, 2022. In reality, the picture dates back to 2019 and shows residents of Kharkiv who had been praying every day in the city square since March 2014 when Russian separatists attacked Ukraine.

Read MoreOld image shows Ukrainians praying to mark 2014 separatist attacks, unrelated to current conflict