International

Did a widely-shared video authentically show Liberian President Joseph Boakai attacking the "racially prejudiced attitude" of his American counterpart Donald Trump? No, that's not true: The video included fake audio, likely the product of AI. The underlying footage of Boakai was in fact recorded in 2017. The video appeared in a July 10, 2025, post on TikTok (archived here) with…

Did U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren suggest that Mollie Tibbetts' family has "to remember we need to focus on real problems like illegal immigrants not being able to see their kids"? No, that's not true: The viral meme distorted Warren's 2018 comments on the case in which an undocumented worker was charged and later convicted of the 20-year-old woman's murder. During…

Does a viral video show Israeli soldiers celebrating the 2024 release of comrades who had been detained in connection with charges that nine soldiers had raped a Palestinian at a desert prison camp? No, that's not true: The video was first posted to X on November 10, 2023 and depicts a rowdy party unrelated to the Sde Teiman camp rape…

Did a Texas city require residents to sign an "Israel loyalty pledge" in order to be eligible to get relief funds after deadly floods in 2025? No, that's not true: There is no evidence that any Texas town or county impacted by the deadly flooding of July 2025 established any such loyalty pledge. The meme making the claim did not…

Were the parents of Rep. Ilhan Omar ordered into immigration court to answer allegations that they falsified records to make them eligible for refugee status? No, that's not true: The meme spreading that claim originated on a Facebook page with a satire disclaimer and a warning that all the contents of the page are made up. The owner of the…

Did Italy withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement, following the path of the United States? No, that's not true: As of this writing, the most recent version of the document, updated July 9, 2025, still names Italy as one of the treaty's participants. Neither the authorities nor credible media organizations reported the purported withdrawal. The claim appeared in a post…

Does a video shared on social platforms show Greta Thunberg dancing to Madonna's "La Isla Bonita"? No, that's not true: A reverse image search revealed the video was created by a group of Ukrainian video makers known as Cucumber Mafia. The dancing woman does not look like Thunberg and appears to be much older than twenty-two, which was Thunberg's age…

Does a viral video document ICE agents seizing undocumented children from foster care to deport them? No, that's not true: It's a montage of unrelated clips about alleged juvenile crimes, disorderly behavior at school and other situations with no apparent connection to immigration roundups. The video's narrator provides no dates, places, case numbers or other information to permit independent corroboration…

Did a viral social media video really show "incredibly rare white auroras" over Norway? No, that's not true: According to specialized detection tools the video was generated using artificial intelligence. It featured stars moving in the sky like dots in some kind of jelly instead of in straight lines, another clue the video was not a real recording. The video…

Does a viral video show footage of the downing of an Israeli aircraft released by Iran? No, that's not true: The video originated on a TikTok channel posting gameplay footage from the online game DCS World. It was not released by Iranian authorities. The video appeared in a post on X (archived here) published on July 3, 2025 with a…

Did an image shared widely in July 2025 show an authentic screenshot of a German weather forecast? No, that's not true: The image was edited to make it more dramatic. No lava appeared in the original footage. The claim appeared in a June 30, 2025, post on X (archived here). It read: Jeeeeezus, if you think the climate propaganda is…

Did U.S. President Donald Trump write on Truth Social that he regretted taking "advise" from tech billionaire Elon Musk, and affirm that there was no "white genocide" in South Africa? No, that's not true: A screenshot shared widely in July 2025 was digitally edited. An archive of the president's account on Truth Social showed that such a post never existed.…

Is a child who was slammed onto the floor at the Sheremetyevo airport an Iranian citizen? No, that's not true: According to the Iranian ambassador to Russia, the child seen in the viral video is Afghan. Earlier, a Russian regional commissioner for children's rights said that the critcally injured toddler comes from an Afghan family with Russian citizenship that resides…

Did Ali Khameini, Supreme Leader of Iran, post a congratulatory message on X.com, telling New York mayoral primary election winner Zohran Mamdani "Our work has only just begun"? No, that's not true: The owner of the account where the post first appeared followed it up with a comment that reads: "In case it wasn't obvious, I made it up." Khameini's…

Did WWE issue an announcement saying that a World Wrestling Entertainment event scheduled for June 28, 2025, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, "will proceed as planned"? No, that's not true: What looked like a statement from the organization was first published on meme and satire pages. As of this writing, WWE hadn't cancelled the event, but also hadn't confirmed that its…

Did President Donald Trump post the board of Tesla should approve a new compensation package for Elon Musk, "ASAP" and to get him "P-A-I-D"? No, that's not true: A viral image that showed such a post was fake. The Truth Social post was not found on Trump's account or on a site that archives all his posts. The bogus Trump…

Does a viral video document Iranian missiles being made ready for an imminent launch? No, that's not true: It's an AI-generated video. Several visual artifacts call attention to the kinds of inconsistencies and illogical details found in AI images. Also, the missiles shown do not visually match any of the 25 missile systems Iran had as of June, 2025, according…

Did Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian publicly announce his resignation from office as of June 23, 2025? No, that's not true: As of this writing, no such dispatches appeared on websites of credible news outlets. The website of the Iranian president made no such public announcement. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on June 22, 2025.…

Did Vice President Kamala Harris say "If we elect Trump, we will be at war within 6 months" as multiple viral memes claim she did? No, that's not true: There is no publicly available proof she said it. None of the multiple versions of the meme provides the time or place when she is supposed to have said it. Had…

Did a video really show a B2 bomber landing on the deck of an aircraft carrier? No, that's not true: The video, which went viral in the wake of the U.S. bombing Iranian nuclear plants with such planes in June 2025, appeared on a TikTok channel that publishes video game footage. It appeared there months before the strikes on Iran…