Russia And Ukraine

Did Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin switch his loyalty to Kyiv, reaching an agreement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that his paramilitary unit would fight alongside Ukrainian soldiers? No, that's not true: A viral video on social media does not cite any verifiable sources of information or provide visual evidence of the claim's accuracy, and no credible reports corroborate it.…

Did a viral video capture two Russian Tu-160 military jets arriving in South Africa in 2023? No, that's not true: The footage, initially aired by the Russian state-sponsored TV network RT, showed a 2019 event. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on Facebook on July 26, 2023. Its caption was: What is this? The video contained what appeared…

Did Russian President Vladimir Putin prohibit 5G in Russia, tearing down all the towers delivering it? Not, that's not true: As of this writing, 5G is working in major Russian cities, and the government continues to invest in the expansion of the technology. The claim originated in an outlet known for publishing fictitious "news" stories. The claim originated from an…

by: Evgenia Prodaeva Can "a nuclear explosion like in Chornobyl," the world's worst nuclear accident, now occur at Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant after the June 6, 2023, explosion that destroyed the Kakhovka dam emptied most of the reservoir used to cool down the plant's reactors? No, that's not true: Zaporizhzhia's six power units shut down in 2022, and no…

Did a billboard in Japan read "Stop War, Stop Zelenskyy"? No, that's not true: Those statements were added to an electronic billboard on a Japanese street in a video. The actual advertisement on the sign had nothing to do with the Russian war on Ukraine. Japan's government released a statement in support of Ukraine in June 2023, and there is…

Does a viral video show a large group of Ukrainian soldiers surrendering on July 24, 2023, or on July 30, 2023? No, that's not true: The clip captures a prisoner exchange that was reported to have taken place in late May 2023 in an undisclosed location in Ukraine. The story appeared in an article (archived here) published by halturnerradioshow.com on…

Did illegal migrants in Germany evade deportation by breaking a window and jumping out of a bus moving slowly in traffic? No, that's not true: The details of this widely circulated video are not well documented, but the video was not filmed in Germany. All indications -- from the captions on the earliest copies of the video to the registration…

Did a top World Economic Forum official call for the "elimination" of conspiracy theorists? No, that's not true: The man described as a "top WEF official" in the article making the claim doesn't work for them and doesn't have any authority to decide things on behalf of the Forum; more importantly, that person never said "dangerous conspiracy theorists must be…

Did American actor Elijah Wood offer Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "to cure drug and alcohol addiction" on Instagram? No, that's not true: The actor doesn't post Instagram stories publicly. Wood did not say anything that would imply he was addressing Zelenskyy specifically in the heavily edited clip circulating on social media. The claim appeared in a tweet published on July…

Did the United Kingdom send a "'Robot Royal Force' 🇬🇧 Type-C robot" to help Ukraine with the war in July 2023? No, that's not true: There was no information or credible report online to corroborate the claim that the United Kingdom sent or would send a "'Robot Royal Force' Type-C robot" to help Ukraine following Russia's military invasion. Also, animation…