FACT CHECK: Did Ukraine Kill 12 Generals In A Single Day With HIMARS? | Check Your Fact
Verdict: Misleading
Ukraine did not kill 12 generals in a single day, though they claimed the deaths of several Russian officers in December 2022.
Category Russia
Is this blonde woman with Putin a ‘paid extra’ for photo-ops? Nope
Social media users have noted that the same blonde woman has appeared behind Russian President Vladimir Putin on three different occasions - proof, they say, that he used "paid extras" during his address marking the start of 2023. However, it turns out that these images do feature different women. One is a soldier who was given a prize by Putin on December 31, 2022 while the two other images show a regional deputy (local politician) from Novgorod, and a supporter of the Russian president. This politician has been previously accused of being an extra.
Did Vladimir Putin use paid actors in his New Year’s speech? – Truth or Fake
Internet sleuths are setting social media alight with claims that the Russian president used "paid extras" in his New Year's Eve address, after they found previous official photographs featuring a blonde woman with a striking resemblance to one pictured during the speech. These claims have made media headlines across the globe. We take a closer look in this edition of Truth or Fake with Vedika Bahl.
Five fact-checks about the war in Ukraine
Russia's invasion of Ukraine this year kept our fact-checkers very busy. We wrote 92 articles debunking false claims about information related to the war. These ranged from claims the Bucha massacre was staged to false TV reports and accusations of Nazism among Ukrainians. To mark the end of the year, we made a list of some of our top fact-checks about Ukraine.
Was Putin’s Spokesman Caught Wearing $6 Million Watch?
False. While Dmitry Peskov possesses a number of expensive watches by designer Richard Mille, including one estimated to be worth more than $600,000, the watch in the photo shared on social media is not worth $6 million.
Reports by Russian independent media claimed the watch in the photo was worth 6 million rubles, which appears to have been misinterpreted or mistranslated into a dollar value.
This video was filmed years before the 2022 Ukraine-Russia crisis
A video that shows a military tank hurtling down the street has been viewed thousands of times in social media posts that claim it was filmed in Ukraine in January 2022, after Western leaders sounded the alarm over a potential Russian invasion. The posts are misleading; the footage was filmed in May 2014, when deadly clashes erupted between Ukrainian troops and separatists in the city of Mariupol.
Did Zelensky’s Wife Go on $40K Shopping Spree in Paris?
Claims that the first lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska went on a shopping spree during her visit to Paris this month are not supported by credible evidence.
They appear to stem from a single tweet posted by an unverified and low-engagement Twitter account, which provided scant details about the alleged purchases, simply citing an anonymous "source."
Additionally, the location of the U.S.-based account and its posting history raise significant doubts about the veracity of the claims.
Why are fake covers of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo circulating in Russia?
There have been at least six fake covers of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo circulating online, especially on Russian Telegram channels, over the past six months. And Charlie Hebdo isn't the only magazine targeted- fake covers of numerous international media outlets have also been circulating online since the start of the war in Ukraine. The FRANCE 24 Observers team spoke to an independent Russian media outlet that investigated these fake covers being posted.
How we debunked reports of anti-Zelensky graffiti in a Paris suburb
Did graffiti depicting the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a black hole "absorbing European money" really appear on the streets of a Paris suburb? That's what a photo that has been circulating on social media since November 29 seems to show. However, our team found no trace of this graffiti at the actual site. Our forensic analysis of the photo shows signs that it was digitally altered. We also consulted some street art experts, who pointed out some inconsistencies in the art.
Did Ukraine Give Up Nukes for Russia, U.S. Security Guarantees?
The Budapest Memorandum, signed in December 1994, resulted in Ukraine voluntarily handing over its nuclear arsenal, as well as other military stocks and munitions, to Russia.
In exchange, Moscow vowed to respect Ukraine's sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity.
The U.S. and the U.K. were among the co-signatories, but stopped short of providing "guarantees" (which would have entailed a direct military intervention) and instead offered "assurances," a term that left some wiggle room for a response to potential aggression from Moscow.