Europe

Does the "real" story of Pinocchio include the details that Gepetto was a slave master who made a puppet from the skin and hair of human slaves? No, that's not true: The fictional story is about a puppet made from an enchanted piece of wood. Gepetto was not a slave master. The story was written by Carlo Collodi in installments…

Did Belgian public broadcaster VRT make an editorial decision to intentionally interrupt Eurovision song contest coverage to express its protest against Israel's actions in Gaza? No, that's not true: The message that appeared on the TV screens was posted by VRT unions, not VRT, a spokesperson for the TV channel confirmed to Lead Stories. One union openly wrote about that…

Did King Frederik X of Denmark wave a Palestinian flag from a balcony in Copenhagen as a crowd of protesters were passing below? No, that's not true: This video was filmed in Malmo, Sweden, about 17 miles away and across the Øresund strait from the Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark. The man on the balcony waving the flag is not…

Does a video in a social media post show "Muslim migrants" destroying public property because an Israeli singer was featured in the Eurovision song contest? No, that's not true: The footage shows a 2009 anti-Israel demonstration in Sweden that turned violent. That 2009 demonstration occurred during a tennis tournament and was not related to that year's Eurovision contest, which was…

Did French Air Force aerobatic jets accidentally emit smoke that displayed the Russian flag to mark the May 8, 2024, arrival of the Olympic flame in the French city of Marseille? No, that's not true: The eight Alpha Jets left smoke trails in the colors and order of France's tricolor -- blue, white and red. Russia's tricolor is white, blue…

Did White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre field a question on the topic of alleged Ukrainian manifestations of Nazism from a reporter during a press briefing? No, that's not true on both counts: The reporter did not ask this question, and Jean-Pierre did not respond to such a question. An AI-generated voiceover has been added to authentic video footage from…

Was German politician Marie-Thérèse Kaiser convicted and fined in May 2024 solely for sharing statistics regarding sexual assaults committed by Afghan immigrants? No, that's not true: Kaiser was found guilty of "incitement to hatred" under the German Criminal Code, not merely posting government figures. The law stipulates that individuals who incite hatred against specific groups based on nationality, race, religion…

Did Germany pass a law that includes fines of up to 10,000 euros for using a wrong pronoun while referring to a transgender person? No, that's not true: The law specifically says that what is punishable is a malicious disclosure of that person's birth gender or of their deadname (the name they used prior to transition) without their consent. It…

Does a social media post from April 2024 show a "current" cover of German news magazine Der Spiegel, featuring Donald Trump with a lit match and a headline that calls him a "Fire Devil"? No, that's not true: The Der Spiegel edition shown was published in 2020, not 2024. Additionally, according to a Lead Stories translator, the headline more appropriately…

Does a photo show a pro-Palestine protester in the United States defiantly using an officer's riot shield as a mirror as she applies her lip gloss? No, that's not true: This photo's authentic caption says it shows a protester in Tbilisi, Georgia. A different photo from a Reuters photographer covering the April 16, 2024, demonstrations in Tbilisi against a proposed…

Did "Spetznas" snipers fatally shoot the World Economic Forum's head of the Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Supply Chains, Kiva Allgood, on April 26, 2024? No, that's not true: There is no credible evidence that this happened. In addition, the website where this claim appeared has a record of publishing fabricated content. The claim appeared in an article published by…

Did the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony feature a "figure of death holding a NEEDLE"? No, that's not true: The "figure of death" was actually a puppet of Lord Voldemort, the villain from the "Harry Potter" book series. Lord Voldemort is holding a magic wand, not a needle. Lead Stories could not find any evidence that the London Olympics had…

Did Piers Morgan interview controversial wellness coach Barbara O'Neill about a "Diabetes Solution" on his program "Uncensored"? No, that's not true: The video circulating on social media is fabricated, using an AI voiceover to simulate a conversation between Morgan and O'Neill. The Hive Moderation detection tool determined that the video's audio track was 100 percent likely to be AI. A…

Was a Guantanamo Hospital orderly arrested for trying to murder World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab on April 22, 2024? No, that's not true: This claim appeared on a website that publishes fabricated content. No credible evidence exists to substantiate this claim. The claim appeared in an article published by Real Raw News on April 25, 2024. Titled "Red Hats…

Did Dr. Oz promote a weight-loss "coffee trick" endorsed by Adele? No, that's not true: A viral video making the claim utilized AI-generated sound. Lead Stories found no evidence confirming that Dr. Oz ever promoted this "coffee trick" or that Adele ever endorsed it. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on Facebook on the page named "Transforming Women"…

Is corn syrup "illegal in much of the world," as a post on Facebook claimed? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no evidence that corn syrup is banned in any country. The claim stems from a common misconception that high fructose corn syrup is banned in the European Union, which is false. The sweetener was formerly regulated under a…

Did the CIA declassify a 1957 file in 1999 that proves true the theories about the hidden history of an advanced global civilization, the Tartarian Empire? No, that's not true: The CIA document "National Cultural Development Under Communism" contains mention of "Tatars of Transcaucasia" and "the history of Tartaria," along with a Communist directive to revise that history to "eliminate…

Did a viral image portray Beyonce's "first big 'country' show in a nearly empty stadium"? No, that's not true: The 2024 claim came from a satirical network that explicitly warns the audience that it does not publish fact-based stories. The shared picture showed a 2023 concert of Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe at Wembley Stadium, with Beyonce's photo superimposed on…

Did a Delta Force strike team arrest 86-year-old World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab on April 12, 2024? No, that's not true: There is no credible evidence that this happened. In addition, the website where this claim appeared has a rrecord of publishing fabricated content. The claim appeared in an article published by Real Raw News on April 15, 2024,…

Is the world's first permanent electrified road open in Sweden as of April 2024? No, that's not true: Several short sections of prototype electrified roadway in Sweden have been used to test various charging methods for electric cars and trucks. But the first large-scale, permanent and open-for-public-use electrified road has not been constructed. A 13-mile pilot project was to be…