Is Timothy Donahue the ICE agent who shot and killed Joan Sebastian Guerrero in Maine on July 13, 2026? No, that's not true: Neither Immigration and Customs Enforcement nor the Maine Attorney General's Office has released the identity of the federal immigration agent involved in the shooting. A news report in April 2026 also identifies Donahue as a Border Patrol…
Does a real photo show Edinburgh Castle displaying Argentine flags ahead of the World Cup match against England on July 15, 2026? No, that's not true: The image appears to have been digitally edited. The Argentine flags were added to an older photo of the Scottish landmark. A reverse image search shows the original photo predates the 2026 World Cup…
Has a photo of Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, released by his office on July 12, 2026, been publicly available since 2023? No, that's not true: A reverse image search found no evidence that the image had been published three years earlier. In addition, the photo released by McConnell's office shows the senator with a copy of The Washington Post…
Did President Donald Trump make a post on Truth Social asking Markwayne Mullin if ICE detention centers could be used to lock up communists? No, that's not true: Viral images that appear to show such a post are fake; there is no such message on Trump's actual account. It likely originated as satire because the message also attacked people for…
Does a real photo show President Donald Trump sleeping with his mouth open during Fourth of July fireworks in Washington, D.C.? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that the image depicts an actual moment in which the president dozed off, which seems unlikely during a display featuring 850,000 fireworks and pyrotechnic effects at the "Salute to America 250"…
Did a real report from Euronews state that Volodymyr Zelenskyy's parents were detained for laundering $11 million? No, that's not true: At the time of writing, Euronews had not published a story matching the claim. A Ukrainian governmental body dedicated to stopping the spread of disinformation has said the claim is false. The claim, which has appeared across social media,…
Did a story claiming that men said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was a high-priced escort in Boston come from an actual news source? No, that's not true: The story originated on a Facebook page known for posting satirical content that carries the disclaimer, "Nothing on this page is real," and the accompanying image bears the same warning. Lead Stories found no…
Is there a real image of "0-1" spray-painted under a Department of War plaque? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that graffiti was ever painted beneath the sign, which is located at the Pentagon. Image searches frequently returned a very similar image featuring the Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth. The claim appeared in a post made on X…
Does a real photo show an Iranian player displaying a symbolic school backpack at the World Cup? No, that's not true: An AI detection tool determined that the image was 99.8% "likely to be AI-generated." There are no credible reports that an Iranian player held up the backpack. The symbol previously has been exhibited in honor of schoolgirls killed when…
Does a video really show footage of the U.S. striking an Iranian fighter jet in "combat action" over the Strait of Hormuz? No, that's not true: The video was posted by a self-described parody account on social media. It also appears the footage shows Russian aircraft and was clipped from a video game. The claim was made in a post…
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