International

Did Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's wife, Olena Zelenska, buy a Bugatti sports car for almost 4.5 million euros in June 2024? No, that's not true: The invoice supposedly proving the claim contained multiple errors. Both Bugatti and Bugatti's Paris-based dealership denied the authenticity of the document shared online and a video supposedly showing a Bugatti employee confirming the claim appears…

Did Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla "admit" on June 18, 2024, that COVID-19 was used as "a test"? No, that's not true. Pfizer Media Relations told Lead Stories that the "quote is taken out of context." Additionally, the head of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology company never used the word "test"; instead, Bourla said the pandemic was "like a rehearsal," preparing Pfizer…

Did the leader of France's National Rally party Marine Le Pen announce that she will save France from "the New World Order" and that "Macron will be arrested"? No, that's not true: The story came from a website known for producing false stories, and it was first published a year before the 2024 legislative election in France. The false story…

Does Iceland have "no prisons" and is electricity free there? No, that's not true: Iceland does have four correctional facilities. A typical monthly residential electricity bill there ranges between $16.50 and $43. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on Facebook on June 17, 2024. It opened: ICELAND: The country where education and medicare are free. No prisons. No…

Does a video on social media show crowds gathered in Australia to greet Julian Assange on his return in June 2024? No, that's not true: The video was published in 2023, showing footage from crowds at the May 20 Sydney Freedom March. The video has a clear logo identifying it as being from Aussie Cossack News and the footage was…

Did WikiLeaks.org remove 20,000 leaked Democratic National Committee emails on the day that Julian Assange made a plea deal in a U.S. District Court? No, that's not true: A review of the Internet Archive Wayback Machine shows that the error notice on the WikiLeaks DNC email database appeared sometime between November 5 and November 8, 2022. It is not a…

Did Rishi Sunak, prime minister of the U.K. and leader of the Conservative Party, state that there are plans in place to pay citizens £75,000 to leave the country? No, that's not true: Neither Sunak nor the Tories as a whole have proposed that plan during the country's general election. The claim came from a satirical social media account. The…

Did the U.K.'s King Charles III die on or before June 24, 2024 as a post on Facebook claimed? No, that's not true: As of this writing on June 26, 2024, the king of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and head of the Commonwealth, was alive. There have been no official announcements or credible reports regarding…

Was a fire-damaged ship, the Olympic, disguised as the Titanic so it could be intentionally sunk to commit "the greatest insurance fraud in history"? No, that's not true: The baseless Titanic-switch conspiracy is proven false on multiple fronts. The Olympic was in service the night the Titanic sank, and continued to be used as a passenger ship and a troop…

Does a video on social media showing garbage scattered across Frankfurt's Old Town in Germany accurately attribute the trash to "the consequences of mass immigration"? No, that's not true: The claim on social media misled about the cause of the scene. In reality, the footage showed litter and debris left by soccer fans who arrived in the city to watch…

Was British activist Tommy Robinson arrested in Canada for expressing anti-Islam views? No, that's not true: In a video of his arrest, the plainclothes Canada Border Services Agency officers who handcuffed Robinson said he was arrested on an "outstanding immigration warrant." They also suggested the activist lied about his criminal history on his visa application to enter Canada. The claim…

Is a photo showing hockey fans spelling out "FUCK TRUDEAU" with placards authentic? No, that's not true: The sign spelled out by fans at a Stanley Cup game actually read "BELIEVE," and was digitally edited. Two different publications posted the original photo with the sign reading "BELIEVE." An online news search did not yield any evidence of a sign with…

Does an image comparison posted on social media prove that Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform UK party, exaggerated the size of the crowd at one of his events? No, that's not true: The image on the left accurately displayed the audience at a political rally. The other picture, showing Farage in front of a smaller crowd, was taken at…

Did protesters hang a "giant banner" at the Brooklyn Museum in New York City in June 2024 of Iran's leader "thanking" Americans for pro-Palestinian rallies, as footage on social media appears to show? No, that's not true: The banner appears to have been added through generative AI, as initial video recordings of a protest at the museum on May 31,…

Did London Mayor Sadiq Khan ban taxi drivers from displaying the flag of England, also known as St. George's Cross, during Euro 2024 football championship? No, that's not true: The regulation prohibits all flags on any taxi in the British capital and does not single out the flag of England. These decisions are made by Transport for London, not the…

Is Israel out of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, as of June 24, 2024, as was claimed in a social media post? No, that's not true: As of this writing, Israel remains on the list of 206 national teams entered to compete. Lead Stories could find no evidence that would corroborate the claim that Israel was "out of the…

Did Team USA lose $60 million in endorsements after Caitlin Clark was not placed on the 2024 USA Basketball Women's Olympic Team? No, that's not true: the Indiana Fever WNBA player is indeed not on the team but the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee told Lead Stories that the claim about losing endorsements is "not true." A representative of…

Was the Earth's average temperature 2 degrees Celsius warmer 55,000 years ago? No, that's not true: Climate experts contacted by Lead Stories all agreed that the Earth's temperature 55,000 years ago was colder than today's average temperature, not warmer. Ice core samples and other geological data show that global temperatures were lower due to extensive ice sheets and lower greenhouse…

Did Just Stop Oil, an environmental activist group, spray orange paint on Taylor Swift's private jet at London Stansted Airport in June 2024? No, that's not true: Essex Police arrested two women from the group, whose exploits were filmed and posted on social media, but the video did not appear to feature Swift's Falcon 7X jet. They did break into…

Did the Union of European Football Associations force team captains to wear a pro-LGTBQ+ armband during the organization's Euro 2020 competition and was Cristiano Ronaldo the only one not to wear it? No, that's not true: Instances of armbands worn during Euro 2020 in support of the LBGTQ+ community were not an order from the governing body. The OneLove armband,…