Are photos showing leaders of Hamas "living luxuriously" generated by artificial intelligence? No, that's not true: The set of images in a viral social media post making that claim already appeared in an article published online in 2014. The person who posted the images in October 2023 later clarified he ran them through an upscaling algorithm in an attempt to…
Was a black flag that appeared over Razavi Shrine in Iran in October 2023 meant to express a "call to all of Islam for War"? No, that's not true: In this particular case, it was a symbol of mourning, as the Facebook account for the shrine itself wrote. While extremist groups have hijacked the symbolism of black flags in recent…
Does a video show a dispute between pro-Palestinian protesters and police in Barcelona, Spain, during the 2023 Hamas-Israel conflict? No, that's not true: The video dates back to 2020, almost three years before the conflict arising from Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. According to contemporaneous reports, the people shown in the video were actually protesting against COVID-19 restrictions…
Does a video show Israeli police violently arresting Orthodox Jews who are protesting what a claim called "the Palestinian Genocide" -- with police purportedly enforcing new regulations that allow arrests of civilians who say things that "hurt morale"? No, that's not true: This video shows a June 5, 2023, clash between police and Orthodox Jews who were protesting mandatory conscription…
Does a video prove Palestinians are faking injuries in the October 2023 Hamas-Israel conflict? No, that's not true: The footage shown is from a 2017 documentary about film production in Gaza. The people appearing to be bloody are showcasing makeup artists' talents and are not "crisis actors" pretending to be injured in the conflict. The claim appeared in a video…
Is an image of cheering Atlético Madrid soccer team fans with a giant Palestinian flag authentic? No, that's not true: A representative for the sports team was quoted as saying that this image was not authentic. An AI image detector site rated the image 99.9 percent likely to be AI generated. Lead Stories could not find an article from a…
Did the Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg post a photo of herself holding a placard that reads "6 Million wasn't enough"? No, that's not true: She never posted the photo in question. Thunberg did express her pro-Palestinian stand on social media but used different words, and condemned antisemitism in subsequent tweets. The authentic photo showed her holding a sign saying,…
Does a video circulating on social media show pro-Gaza protesters in India waving the Italian flag? No, that's not true: The flag carried by protesters shown in the video is the Welfare Party Of India flag, not the Italian flag, nor Palestinian flag. The signage of the long vertical banner the protesters are carrying identifies the group as the Welfare…
Does a video show helicopters from "Arab countries" flying toward Gaza in formation with their flags? No, that's not true: This video was filmed on October 4, 2023, in Veracruz, Mexico, and features an air show that was staged as part of the 202-year anniversary of the founding of the Mexican Navy. It has nothing to do with the Hamas-Israel…
Does a photo on social media show President Joe Biden sunbathing on a beach during the Hamas-Israel conflict and House speaker crisis in October 2023? No, that's not true: The picture shows the president and first lady Jill Biden at Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on August 2, 2023. While the first couple did spend the weekend of October 20, 2023 in…
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