Does a video depict South African firefighters dancing at a Canadian airport on their way to help battle the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires? No, that's not true: A video showing 200 South African firefighters singing and clapping together was actually recorded in 2023 as they arrived at the Edmonton International Airport to help fight Canadian wildfires. A South African news…
Were dozens of wildfires in Canada as of June 8, 2023, determined by Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) investigators to be arson? No, that's not true: The RCMP told Lead Stories that its police don't determine what causes a fire, saying that's the responsibility of each individual province or territory. The claim appeared in a post and video on Facebook…
Did a large plume of smoky air from Canada, which spread poor air quality conditions to many places in the U.S. in late June 2023, originate from gold and lithium mining operations in Sakami, Quebec, and not from forest fires? No, that's not true: There were many large and well-documented forest fires burning in the region near Sakami in northern…
Were "30 tons of stolen ammonia nitrate ... taken to Canada to start" the wildfires that began burning in Quebec in May 2023 and blanketed the northeastern United States in early June 2023? No, that's not true: There is no credible information or evidence to support the assertion that, first, 30 tons of ammonium nitrate were stolen; and second, if…
Has Canada's Bill C-11 caused Canadians' social media posts to be censored, including posts about Canadian wildfires? No, that's not true: Bill C-11, also known as the Online Streaming Act, became law in Canada in April 2023. It requires that online streaming platforms contribute to Canadian content and only affects online streaming companies, not users who create content and post…
Does satellite imagery from early June 2023, showing wildfires in Quebec starting simultaneously, prove that the fires were coordinated? No, that's not true: Many factors can explain why wildfires started in the Canadian province at the same time, including lightning strikes, dry conditions in the region and human activity. A spokesman for Quebec's Society for the Protection of Forests Against…
Does a video shared to social media authentically show a Canadian government helicopter setting fire to a forested area in order to ignite a dangerous wildfire? No, that's not true: While the video is authentic, it depicts a controlled burn conducted by the British Columbia Wildfire Services (BCWS) in June 2023. An agency spokesperson confirmed to Lead Stories that such…
Was Pope Francis arrested in Vatican City after a supposed blackout and was he indicted for child trafficking and fraud? No, that's not true: there is no evidence for any of this and the claim went viral through a website run by an anonymous person using a fake identity that has published several other arrest hoaxes in the past. The…
Was George Soros arrested by the FBI and is he currently in federal custody in Philadelphia under accusation of election interference? No, that's not true: the Canadian website that ran the story has a track record of publishing hoaxes and the screenshot of the supposed unsealed court document it offers as proof is photoshopped. The story first appeared as an…
Was Hunter Biden arrested for possession of child porn? No, that's not true: The claim provides none of the public documents that accompany an arrest and was made in a story from a fake news website published in Canada. The story originated as an article (archived here) where it was published by Conservative Beaver on November 6, 2020, under the…
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