Category Narratives

Iconic photo is from Ukraine war, not Russia gas explosion

Olena Kurilo, a teacher, was injured on Feb. 24, 2022, when a Russian missile strike hit her apartment complex in Chuhuiv, Ukraine. Her photograph was taken by at least three journalists that day and she was interviewed on video. Photos in news reports that day show the apartment complex is not the building damaged by a 2018 gas explosion in Russia. Our ruling A social media user claims a photo of a Ukrainian woman that went viral after her apartment building was attacked on the first day of Russia's invasion is actually from a 2018 gas explosion in Russia. At least three photojournalists took photos of the woman on Feb. 24 and she was interviewed on camera. Multiple news reports confirmed the attack on the apartment building that day, and images show the building is not the same one damaged in the Russia gas explosion. We rate this claim False.

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.

Claim that Putin beheaded bioweapon engineers, called Trump to tell him has no basis in fact

There is no evidence Putin beheaded 12 bioweapon engineers in Ukraine. This claim comes from Real Raw News, a blog that has shown a pattern of fabricating news about politicians being executed or arrested by the military. Though the story claims Putin told former President Donald Trump about the alleged beheading, a spokesperson for Trump said the account is baseless.

March 29, 2022
Biolabs Disinformation International community Misconceptions Narratives Russia Russian propaganda Ukraine USA

Viral Photo of Russian Bomber Shows Incident from 2020

Amid rising tensions between the U.S. and Russia over the invasion of Ukraine, a misleading photo posted March 22 on Facebook shows an American fighter jet intercepting a Russian bomber near Alaskan airspace. But the incident was not related to the current situation in Ukraine; the photo appeared in an article published in Aero Magazine in June 2020.

March 25, 2022
Disinformation Escalation / WWIII Misconceptions Russia USA

One America News runs conspiratorial segment claiming strike on Mariupol hospital was US false flag

The aftermath of the attack on a maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine, was captured on video and in photos showing that it was an actual attack. A Pentagon spokesperson called OAN host Pearson Sharp's claims "ridiculous." Several independent experts who spoke to PolitiFact agreed that it was completely without merit. Russian officials have conceded the attack occurred. Our ruling Sharp said the attack on the Mariupol hospital had "the makings of yet another false flag operation" by the U.S. There is no evidence that the attack was staged or a false flag carried out by the U.S. Its aftermath was documented by workers, witnesses and journalists on the ground. We rate OAN's claim Pants on Fire!

No evidence to support claims that Ukraine is killing people for speaking Russian

Russia has leaned on claims that Ukraine has killed Russian speakers in the country and that Russians are the targets of genocide there, but there's no evidence to support that. Ukraine appealed to the U.N.'s International Court of Justice in the Hague to rule on the Russian government's claims of genocide "in the Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts of Ukraine," calling them false. The court ruled 13-2 on March 16 that the Kremlin's justification for the war was unjustified and ordered Russia to stop its invasion. Judges from Russia and China were the two dissenting votes. We rate this post False.

March 22, 2022
"Genocide" vs Russian-speakers Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings Misconceptions Narratives Russia Russian propaganda Ukraine

Fake: Ukraine Committed Genocide Against Donbas Inhabitants

As it happens, official United Nations data suggests that the 14,000 casualty figure that Putin has used does not only refer to civilians. During Russia's 2014-2021 military operations against Ukraine, 14,500 people died in the Donbas war. Of that 14,000, 3,404 were civilians, 4,400 were Ukrainian servicemen and 6,500 were Russian militants. The figure Putin operates with, is the total number of casualties incurred in the Donbas war by both sides.

There is no evidence that Putin invaded Ukraine to fight child trafficking

This claim originated in an article published by a website known for sharing misinformation, including one previous false claim on Ukraine. • Russia's president stated many reasons for the invasion. Ending child trafficking was not among them. • According to the U.S. State Department, Russia is failing to deal with human trafficking within its own borders. Our ruling A post on Facebook alleged that Russia started its invasion of Ukraine to fight child trafficking. The claim originates in an article published by a website known for fabricating stories and sources. There is no evidence that ending child trafficking is a goal of the war in Ukraine. Russia itself is failing to deal with human trafficking within its own borders, according to a report by the U.S. State Department. And while Putin has been very descriptive about his reasons for invading Ukraine, child trafficking has never been mentioned. We rate the post False.

News video of shot up car was filmed in Ukraine, not West Virginia

A West Virginia State Police captain confirmed that the Uber's window decal was an expired inspection sticker from the state. But that doesn't mean that the car itself wasn't in Ukraine. The video showing the car was recorded in Irpin, Ukraine, according to Reuters, which owns the video. It's not uncommon for cars to be exported from the U.S. to other countries, including Ukraine. Our ruling A Facebook post claimed that "a West Virginia inspection sticker on an Uber" proves the car was not in Ukraine. A West Virginia State Police Captain confirmed that the decal on the car was an expired sticker from the state. However, this doesn't mean that the car wasn't in Ukraine ' a spokesperson for Reuters, which owns the video, confirmed that the video was filmed there. It's not uncommon for cars to be exported from the U.S. to other countries, including Ukraine. We rate this claim False.

No, this document doesn’t show classified Ukrainian military orders to attack the Donbas region

The document isn't classified, and there are no direct statements in it about an attack on the Donbas. It makes references to a training camp on the opposite side of the country. Our ruling Russian officials shared a Ukrainian document on Twitter with claims that it showed secret, classified orders for a military offensive on the Donbas region in southeastern Ukraine. This is wrong. There is no proof that the document is classified, and there are no direct statements in it about an attack on the Donbas. The document makes references to a training camp on the opposite side of the country. We rate claims about a document showing a planned military offensive in the Donbas False.