Claim: A video shows three Russian missiles hitting Ukraine and instantly razing the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence to the ground. Fact: The footage is, in fact, from 2021 and shows an Israeli airstrike in Gaza. A video is circulating on social media along with the claim that the footage is of a Russian missile strike […]
Claim: Russian model who criticised President Vladimir Putin in January 2021 on social media has been found dead. Her remains were found in a suitcase on 13 March 2022. Fact: Model Gretta Vedler has been found dead a year after she went missing following her anti-Putin remarks on social media. Her death does not appear […]
Claim: A video circulating on social media shows Russia dropping a thermobaric or vacuum bomb on civilian areas in Ukraine. Fact: The video is in fact from 2015 and depicts a deadly blast in the Chinese port city of Tianjin. Fact or Fiction? On 10 March 2022, Facebook user Habib Khan Meryani shared a video […]
Claim: Russian President Vladimir Putin tried to embarrass a Japanese delegation by bringing his dog to a recent official meeting. Fact: The video is not recent but from 2016, showing Putin meeting two Japanese journalists along with his dog at the Kremlin. Fact or Fiction? On 11 March 2022, Facebook user Imran Lashkarani shared a […]
Claim: Photos depict French President Emmanuel Macron after an 8 March 2022 call with Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the invasion of Ukraine. Fact: The photos do depict Emmanuel Macron but were not taken on 8 March 2022. Fact or Fiction? On 8 March 2022, Visegrád 24 tweeted photos of French President Emmanuel Macron, claiming […]
Claim: Several “live” videos of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have been shared by Facebook pages from around the world. The videos show fighter planes shooting at Ukrainian buildings at night and Ukrainian machines on the ground hitting back with their own firepower. Fact: The video clips are in fact snippets of gameplay from the open-world, […]
Claim: Pakistan has imposed economic sanctions on Russia joining other countries sanctioning the country after its invasion of Ukraine. Fact: The claim is false as no statement suggesting Pakistan has – or will – impose sanctions on Russia has been issued by Prime Minister Imran Khan. The news was published by a satire site but […]
Claim: Russian President Vladimir Putin told the media that he would “visit Pakistan to sign a major oil pipeline deal”. Fact: Vladimir Putin did not tell the media he will visit Pakistan to sign an oil pipeline deal. Fact vs Fiction On 27 February, a video of Vladimir Putin speaking to the press in Russian […]
Claim: A video being shared on WhatsApp allegedly depicts the Mongolian Minister of Public Works setting himself on fire after he failed to deliver on a promise of building 100,000 low-cost homes. Fact: The video does not depict the Mongolian public works minister setting himself on fire. It is, in fact, of Mongolian trade union […]
Claim: An 8-year Ukrainian girl confronts a Russian soldier telling him to go back to his country. Fact: The girl in the videos and photos is not Ukrainian, she is Palestinian citizen Ahed Tamimi who confronted an Israeli soldier in 2012 after her brother was arrested. Fact or Fiction On 27 February 2022, in light […]
Claim: A photo shows former Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) senator Sehar Kamran alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin. Fact: Kamran is not currently in Russia. While Kamran did take a selfie with Putin in 2018, a doctored photo of the two is currently going viral. On 23 February 2022, Twitter user @Zakr1a shared a photo of […]
Claim: A video shows an ‘artificial sun’ created recently by China after successful experimentation going up in the sky during a launch event. Fact: The video is actually of a rocket launch event. The ‘artificial sun’, which was created in a superconducting tokamak magnetic nuclear fusion energy reactor, cannot be launched into the sky. On […]