Category International community

No, Tucker Carlson didn’t say this about Ukraine staging dead bodies

Some people have interpreted a tweet about Tucker Carlson and Ukraine to mean that he suggested the country staged dead bodies. But he didn't say that.

Russia has said without evidence that "fake dead bodies" were "staged" in Bucha after its troops left the town. Carlson, meanwhile, has been criticized for echoing Russian talking points. On March 9, for example, Carlson said a Russian claim that Ukraine has bioweapon labs was "totally and completely true," but there's no evidence that's the case, PolitiFact reported.

But this talking point, about staged bodies, wasn't one Carlson made.

We rate claims that he said the words that appeared in Wash's tweet False.

Old photos of vehicles lined up at fuel stations in UK circulate in Kenya to justify local shortage

Images of vehicles in the United Kingdom queuing at petrol stations are circulating in Kenya as proof that fuel scarcity in the East African nation is not unique. Tweets sharing the claim downplay the Kenyan government's role in the crisis, noting that the same scene is playing out in the UK. However, the pictures used as proof are old and the UK is not experiencing fuel shortages like Kenya.

April 6, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings International community Kenya Media taken out of context Methods Misconceptions Russia UK Ukraine

No, the discovery of bodies in Ukraine’s Bucha was not ‘staged’ with ‘actors’

Ukraine authorities have said bodies discovered on April 2, 2022 in the small town of Bucha were civilians killed by retreating Russian forces, allegations which Moscow has denied. Several posts shared on social networks -- including from Russian authorities -- have claimed that the scene was staged by Ukrainian forces and some of the so-called bodies were filmed moving. But AFP journalists on the ground confirmed they saw dead bodies that had been left for several days; footage used to support the misleading claims does not show the bodies moving, AFP's investigation found.

No, NATO Allied Land Command leader wasn’t captured by Russians in Ukraine

Lt. Gen. Roger L. Cloutier Jr., commander of NATO's Allied Land Command, has not been captured by Russian forces in Mariupol, the Allied Land Command confirmed.

Cloutier posted photos from a recent event in Turkey to his LinkedIn profile, where he disputed the internet rumors alleging that he had been captured.

April 5, 2022
Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings International community Misconceptions NATO Russia Russian propaganda Ukraine USA

Photo of couple draped in Russian and Ukrainian flags has circulated online since 2019

A photo of a couple embracing while draped in both the Russian and Ukrainian flags has circulated online after Moscow's invasion of its pro-Western neighbour alongside a claim it shows "love during [the] war". The image -- which was shared repeatedly in posts linking it to the war in Ukraine -- has circulated in reports since 2019 about a couple embracing at a concert in Poland.

April 5, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings International community Media taken out of context Methods Misconceptions Poland Russia Ukraine

Video shows Gaza tower hit by Israeli strike in 2021, not Ukrainian defence ministry

Footage of a building collapsing after it was pummelled by missiles has been viewed thousands of times in social media posts that claim it shows a Russian strike on the Ukrainian defence ministry. However, the video shows Israeli strikes on a tower in Gaza in May 2021.

Fake: One Third of Ukrainian Refugees Arriving in France Are African Migrantsï¿¼

According to the French Ministry of the Interior, as of March 31, the number of non-Europeans among the more than 26,000 Ukrainian refugees who arrived in France is less than 5%.

April 1, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings Faked news reports France International community Methods Russia Ukraine

Footage has circulated online since 2010 in posts about US and Iraqi forces retaking Iraqi shrine

After Russia invaded neighbouring Ukraine, a video was viewed millions of times in multiple Facebook posts that claimed it shows fighting between soldiers from the two countries. In fact, the video has circulated online since 2010. A visual analysis of the clip found it corresponds with a raid by American and Iraqi troops on a shrine in Iraq in 2004.

Fictional video shared in posts falsely claiming ‘Eiffel Tower was bombed’

A video that appears to show explosions in the French capital of Paris has been viewed thousands of times in misleading social media posts that claim it shows a real attack on the Eiffel Tower. The posts suggest the attack was carried out by Russian forces in response to sanctions from foreign powers following its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine. The footage, however, has been shared in a false context: it shows a fictional film created by a French director that was then shared online by Ukrainian officials in a bid to urge European authorities to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine.

False posts claim Canadian sniper ‘Wali’ was killed shortly after arriving in Ukraine

Multiple posts on Facebook have claimed that a sharpshooting Canadian sniper known as Wali was killed by Russian special forces 20 minutes after he arrived on the frontline in Mariupol, Ukraine as a volunteer fighter. However, this is false; the man, a former Canadian Armed Forces sniper, dispelled the rumours of his death during a video call.

March 31, 2022
Canada Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings International community Misconceptions Russia Russian propaganda Ukraine