Latest fact checks & sources

The video dates back to July 2024. It does not show a recent Russian retaliatory strike on Ukraine.

Claim: The image shows a Ukrainian airbase destroyed in a retaliatory action by Russia. Fact: The claim is false. The image is AI-generated.

Did a widely-shared clip show Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian airbases, in retaliation against a series of drone attacks on Russian warplanes in June 2025? No, that’s not true: The footage was old, and dated to July 2024 at the latest. It appeared to show Russian missiles striking a children’s hospital in Kyiv, not airbases.

Does a viral video really show the destruction of “40 Russian strategic bombers” of type TU-95 destroyed by a “daring…

Both the CBS video and the company’s so-called comment on the issue are fake.

Does a viral image confirm that the Ukrainian government issued new rules prohibiting taking pictures of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy from certain angles? No, that’s not true: Talking to Lead Stories, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Embassy in the United States referred to the image as “fake”. The “rules” were self-contradictory and lacked any specific identifying information tying it to Ukrainian officials.

Multiple social media users recently shared an image claiming it depicted a key military installation in Punjab’s Adampur that suffered damage due to Pakistan’s airstrikes in the region. In its investigation, the Desk found that the viral image reportedly depicted Russian S-400 missile launch units destroyed by a Ukrainian airstrike in occupied Crimea in April 2024. An old and unrelated image was falsely shared on social media as recent with a false claim.

The footage does not depict Pakistani forces shooting down an Indian drone. Rather, it shows a Russian drone falling outside Kharkiv, Ukraine.

The post provides no evidence for its claims and instead links to a digital book that claims to have ‘hidden insights from the esoteric realm’

Propagandists distorted the content of the publication. In fact, the columnist expressed his personal opinion on why such a move would be appropriate from a political point of view.

This “decree” is fake and does not appear on the official website of the President of Ukraine. The “document” contains glaring formatting and structural inconsistencies and attributes powers to the head of state that he does not possess: exemption from conscription on the basis of kinship is not provided for by Ukrainian law. Meanwhile, an authentic decree numbered 273/2025 does exist, but it concerns the awarding of the title Hero of Ukraine and has nothing to do with military recruitment – its content has been completely falsified to create a manipulative narrative.

Representatives of Ukrainian Orthodox Church of St. Andrew in Toronto have denied claims that a portrait of Symon Petliura hangs in the sanctuary or that the Ukrainian historical figure is being honoured as a “saint”. The portrait of Petliura is in a parish hall, not on the altar, and is therefore not an icon. Furthermore, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada (UOCC) is an independent church under the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and is not a parish of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).

This information is not true. Ukraine’s Justice Ministry has not published such statistics. According to the department, the number of divorces has overall increased in the country, but not so drastically.

What was claimed: According to Der Spiegel, German intelligence have just arrested two suspected Russia spies who had US defence secretary Pete Hegseth’s private phone number in their mobiles. Our verdict: A spokesperson for Der Spiegel confirmed it did not publish such a story.

What was claimed: A video shows Russian president Vladimir Putin laughing with his face in his hands during a comedy routine in which Volodymyr Zelenskyy appears to play the piano with his penis, before he became president of Ukraine. Our verdict: False. These two clips are from different events and have been edited together to misleadingly make it appear as if President Putin was in the audience for the routine.

There is no evidence that such ads were posted in Lisbon.

WHAT WAS CLAIMED: A BBC report reveals a Russian missile victim who met Prince Harry is a fraud. OUR VERDICT: False. The BBC report is fake and the boy is a genuine victim of a Russian missile attack.

The story by the British tabloid The Sun on this topic is fabricated, and the comment by a royal expert in it is taken from an old video on a completely different topic.

No such cardinal exists, and his photo was generated by artificial intelligence. In addition, the Vatican Bank does not hold accounts for governments, foreign individuals or clients unrelated to the Catholic Church or the Holy See.

This whole news is made up. Zelensky has never made such statements, and the text itself is full of logical errors.