Latest fact checks & sources

The iconic photo circulated online after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the White House in a “military-style black sweatshirt.” Claim: A photograph authentically depicts then-British Prime Minister Winston Churchill visiting the White House in the U.S. during World War II wearing a “siren-suit.” Rating: True

Misbar investigated the circulating video and found the claim to be misleading. Misbar’s team found that the video shows behind-the-scenes moments from the production of a music video. As stated by the original publisher, this refers to the making of a music video called “Brothers.”

Vishvas News’ investigation revealed that the viral video dates back to 2023, when Zelensky broke his fast with Ukrainian Muslim soldiers and religious leaders during Ramadan. The old video is now being shared with misleading references, falsely linking it to recent views.

WHAT WAS CLAIMED: A video shows people being made up to look like war-torn Ukrainian soldiers to get more US funding. OUR VERDICT: False. The clip shows behind-the-scenes footage from the making of a music video.

What was claimed: Clips show Ukrainian soldiers faking combat to appear “war torn” in order to receive US funds. Our verdict: The clips actually show behind-the-scenes footage from a music video about the Ukraine war.

A BBC reporter wasn’t caught on tape cursing about the Trump-Zelenskyy meeting. We rate that claim Pants on Fire!

Misbar investigated the viral video and found the claim to be misleading. Zelenskyy Saying U.S. Will Send ‘Sons and Daughters to War’ Is Miscaptioned Contrary to social media users’ viral claim, the video is miscaptioned and does not feature a recent statement from Ukraine’s Zelenskyy following a heated meeting with Trump on February 28. […] Zelenskyy stated, “The U.S. will have to send their sons and daughters exactly the same way as we are sending [our] sons and daughters to war.” However, Zelenskyy was referring to a hypothetical scenario where Ukraine’s defeat could trigger a wider conflict, forcing the U.S. to intervene as a NATO member.

But the criticism of Zelenskyy’s lack of traditional tie-and-jacket attire misses an obvious question: Why does he dress like that? As it turns out, the black tactical gear he wore to the Oval Office – much like his now-iconic olive-green fleeces and combat boots – is part of a growing visual shift in Ukraine, marked by the war’s impact on the clothing industry and the military’s now central place in Ukrainian culture. I spoke to Illia Ponomarenko – a Ukrainian journalist who has covered the war, written for the Kyiv Post and The Kyiv Independent and authored I Will Show You How It Was: The Story of Wartime Kyiv – about the real meaning behind Zelenskyy’s style. “The clothes are more than clothes,” he said. “They are part of a culture of people who are involved in this war.”

The claim was based on a fake, unverified article that was later deleted, with the publishing website issuing a public apology. Maksym Savrasov and other Ukrainian officials denied the claim.

Following last month’s reported Oval Office confrontation between Trump and Zelensky, two videos emerged recently, purportedly of a pro-Trump rally in the U.K. after Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s demonstration of support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Misbar investigated the clips and found the claim to be misleading. The allegations misleadingly portrayed previous protests as support for Trump’s recent stance on Ukraine.

Did Elon Musk tweet “The USA needs to hold an election. Trump would lose by a landslide.” on March 7, 2025? No, that’s not true: The post in question does not appear on Musk’s X account and it was not indexed by Google. A viral screenshot that appears to show such a post bears signs of digital manipulation.

A fabricated image claiming to show the transcript of the angry meeting between US president Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office was shared as real.

In reality, these photos were not taken in Georgia, but in Washington, D.C. Image analysis tools indicate that the graffitis were added to the photos in graphic editors.

A post shared on X claims to show Heath and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about the real enemy being the deep state [rather than Russia, Ukraine, or China]. Verdict: False. This is a parody account, not the actual account belonging to Kennedy Jr.

There is no proof of this. Neither Donald Trump nor anyone from his administration made such statements.

Wired has never published such claims, and the video itself was probably created using AI. The fake is noticeably different from the outlet’s official style: it lacks the characteristic title, and the footage used is of poor quality. StopFake’s journalists found no evidence of such a bot campaign; instead, they discovered that after Zelensky’s meeting with Trump, Russian propaganda stepped up the spread of deepfakes, doctored screenshots, and fake videos bearing the logos of well-known media outlets to sow dissension among Ukraine’s allies and demoralise Ukrainian society.

A video has surfaced on TikTok of luxury cars pulling up to a private jet with a caption suggesting that it shows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy using billions to fund such a lifestyle. The Verdict False The video comes from the Instagram account of a private jet provider company and nothing in the original post links the jet and cars to Zelenskyy.

A TikTok user posted a video claiming to show Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky insulting United States President Donald Trump during a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on March 1. It turns out, however, that Zelensky didn’t insult Trump – the video has been manipulated.

What was claimed A video shows Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying the US will have to send their sons and daughters to fight in Ukraine. Our verdict This clip is from 2023 and has been taken out of context. In the full video, Mr Zelenskyy discusses how Ukraine losing the war would risk Russia invading Baltic NATO member states, potentially leading to US involvement on the ground.

Recently, a video claiming that Ukraine’s flag was raised on the Statue of Liberty went viral online. Misbar investigated the viral claim and found it to be fake; the clip was originally published on TikTok and labeled “AI-generated.”