Latest fact checks & sources

The Verdict False This video shows an Argentinian dancer Pablo Acosta and not Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Various media reports originating in Ukraine and Russia are claiming that the Ukrainian government is seeking to extradite military-aged refugees and “draft dodgers” back to the country, and that Ukraine’s requests have so far been rejected by a number of its European neighbors. The reports, which are being circulated primarily by Russian government-funded media organizations RT and Sputnik, have also spread to some Western media including a viral Facebook video.

German aid organizations allegedly demanded that money be spent on sick German children instead of tank deliveries to Ukraine. But the whole story is made up, and the video explaining it is a spoof.

On Sept. 21, 2023, the phrase “Glory to Urine” became one of the top trending U.S. topics on X (formerly Twitter). The phrase was trending thanks to a fake video that allegedly showed a billboard in New York City’s Manhattan with the same three words, supposedly as an accidentally misspelled welcome message for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He had been in town for the United Nations General Assembly.

Social media users in Kenya have shared a video with the claim it is the trailer for an upcoming Hulu documentary, apparently cancelled because of pressure from the US government. But the trailer is fake.

Social media users are claiming a video shows the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shaking his body in a tight, sparkly one-piece outfit. This is false; the footage is of a performance given by an Argentine belly dancer and instructor and it appears to have been doctored to superimpose Zelensky’s face.

Social media users are claiming a video shows the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shaking his body in a tight, sparkly one-piece outfit. This is false; the footage is of a performance given by an Argentine belly dancer and instructor and it appears to have been doctored to superimpose Zelensky’s face.

Viral social media posts claim Oleksiy Reznikov was seen partying on a yacht in the South of France days after leaving his post as defence minister of Ukraine. But these photos pre-date the war in Ukraine and were taken in Turkey in 2020.

Jens Stoltenberg did not admit that Russia invaded Ukraine because of NATO expansion

A photo of former Ukrainian defence minister Oleksii Reznikov is circulating online. Users claim it shows him yachting in Europe with his wife – just days after his dismissal over corruption scandals. Also, a video of a riot inside the Ukrainian parliament is falsely posted as recent. We tell you where these images really come from in this edition of Truth or Fake.

[Trump] overstated and understated the respective amounts of financial assistance that the U.S. and European nations have allocated to help Ukraine in the war with Russia. Trump called out Europe, which he said has not provided nearly as much financial support as the U.S. to Ukraine amid its war with Russia. “I think that Europe has to do more,” Trump said, when Welker asked if the security of the U.S. “is linked to Ukraine’s security.” He continued: “We’re in for $200 billion. They’re in for $25 billion. And it affects them more than it affects us.” Those figures are not accurate.

More than a year has passed since Russian troops invaded the town of Bucha in Ukraine. Serhiy Nuzhnenko was one of the first photojournalists to enter Bucha in the midst of the invasion. His before-and-after images show its striking restoration and the resilience of its residents.

In this paper, the authors provide an overview of the deaths incurred during the early weeks of the war and will attempt to illustrate the range of variables which will inform the practical response to recover and identify those killed, before they receive their final burial. It will introduce some of the organisations which have provided forensic support and will also identify emerging ethical considerations which should be monitored for the remainder of the conflict.

Postmortem changes constitute the natural progression of the body’s decomposition after death, beginning at the cellular level. The process involves complex cellular and biological phenomena. The changes that commence immediately after death continue to occur over a prolonged period at different rates for different organs. The onset and extent of these changes are affected by multiple intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The rates are not precise and differ from one geographical region to another and also differ in the same geographic region from one season to another. Understanding postmortem changes is essential for estimating the postmortem interval (PMI) or time since death, one of the primary objectives of the forensic autopsy. The timings of the appearance of the various postmortem changes mentioned in this brief overview of postmortem changes are only guidelines pertaining to tropical climates unless otherwise specified and should never be considered as absolute.

Forensic pathologists are essentially required to estimate the time since death (TSD) to assist in death investigation by limiting the investigation period and thus helping narrow down the number of suspects in homicide cases. TSD also provides valuable information in establishing the timeline of events that lead to death. This activity reviews the prevalent methods, including traditional and modern techniques, and the inherent shortcomings of the methods of estimation of time since death relates to the essential points needed by members of an interprofessional team managing the medico-legal investigation of death.

An AFP team were the first journalists to discover the horrors of Bucha, a quiet commuter town near Kyiv, occupied by the Russian army for over a month, where Russian troops are accused of massacring hundreds of civilians. This is Danny Kemp’s account of what they saw that day. Some may find it distressing.

A photo of people gathering in a square has been viewed tens of thousands of times alongside a false claim it shows an anti-war protest in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv in September 2023. The photo in fact predates Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine; it was taken in Turin, Italy in November 2018 and shows a rally to support the construction of a controversial train line.

A photo of people gathering in a square has been viewed tens of thousands of times alongside a false claim it shows an anti-war protest in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv in September 2023. The photo in fact predates Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine; it was taken in Turin, Italy in November 2018 and shows a rally to support the construction of a controversial train line.

The troops were placed on alert more than a year ago, and not in response to a statement from the president.

Although Putin claimed that Poland wanted to “regain western territories of Ukraine,” that accusation was unsubstantiated and has never been been confirmed by any actions or declarations of Polish authorities.