Did Ukrainian television channel 1+1, citing Ukraine's Defence Ministry, acknowledge that over a million soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have died or gone missing? No, that's not true: The Department of Press and Information of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence told Lead Stories it was disinformation. Channel 1+1, contacted by Lead Stories, also added that no such information…

Did Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy deliver an urgent speech in which he announced his resignation? No, that's not true: A watermark on the video on social media is from a platform for creating videos with talking AI avatars, the voice is not the same and the content is satirical. No credible reports confirm such an announcement. The claim appeared in…

Did Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announce a "shovel challenge" and ask people to join him in cleaning a Ukrainian cemetery? No, that's not true: The original video showing Zelenskyy shoveling snow from a city street, posted on his official Facebook account in 2019, has been digitally altered to superimpose his video over scenes from a Ukrainian cemetery. The claim appeared…

Has a pregnant medic in the Ukrainian city of Odesa received a summons? No, that's not true: Ukrainian law recognizes pregnancy as a valid reason for a servicewoman's dismissal, and pregnant women do not need to register for military service. The claim appeared in a video on TikTok by @alexandr_turner (archived here) on November 12, 2023, and was also shared…

Did Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko discuss the Russia-Ukraine war with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, showing him a map with military positions, and advising him to reconsider his stance to spare his country a defeat? No, that's not true: A video circulating on social media was created by juxtaposing excerpts from an interview given by Lukashenko to a Ukrainian journalist in…

Did Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appear in a Vicks nasal spray ad on a huge billboard in New York's Times Square, according to a video on TikTok? No, that's not true: The alleged video shown on the billboard in the video on social media uses a digital likeness of Zelenskyy and is one of several examples of digitally edited billboards…

Does this video show former U.S. Marine Corps intelligence officer and analyst Scott Ritter inviting Russian followers to subscribe to his Russian Telegram channel? No, that's not true: The video of the alleged invitation to follow him on his new Telegram channel is taken from a 2022 interview that Ritter gave to The Real News Network, in which he made…

Did American actress Elizabeth Olsen describe the sanctions imposed on Russia by the U.S. and European Union (EU) as meaningless? No, that's not true: In the original video, the actress is shown talking about filmmakers and projects she would like to be a part of, and she does not talk about Russia or economic sanctions. The claim appeared in a…

Правда ли, что больницы украинского города Львова обслуживают только тех, кто говорит на украинском языке или пришёл с переводчиком? Нет, это неправда. Пресс-служба Львовского городского совета опровергла это утверждение в переписке с Lead Stories. Законы Украины допускают использование других языков в системе здравоохранения. Данное утверждение появилось в видео (архив здесь), опубликованном в социальной сети TikTok 6 ноября 2023 года. В…

Has the popular Ukrainian singer Ani Lorak made a promise to Russian military members, to offer a 1-million-ruble reward for the destruction of a U.S.-supplied Abrams tank used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine? No, that's not true: There is no credible evidence that the singer made such a commitment. Lorak also stated that she could not contribute to military…

Правда ли, что западные дипломаты отказались от предложения встретиться с детьми из Донбасса, находящимися в Беларуси, из-за страха взглянуть им в глаза и сказать правду? Является ли утверждение о том, что Беларусь похищает или принудительно перемещает детей из Донбасса на свою территорию, фейковой новостью? Нет, это неправда. Делегация Европейского Союза (ЕС) отказалась участвовать в визите, организованном Беларусью, из-за серьёзных опасений…

Was the primary objective of the protesters at the October 1, 2023, rally in Warsaw to demand a cessation of aid to Ukraine? No, that's not true: The rally aimed to boost support for the opposition Civic Platform party and address concerns about rising costs and democratic checks. Warsaw city authorities reported that around a million people attended an opposition…

Did the newly appointed Ukrainian Minister of Defense, Rustem Umerov, say that he would set the draft age for the Ukrainian army at 16, considering this change to be fair? No, he didn't: Lead Stories found that Umerov made no such statement. On September 14, 2023, this claim appeared in a video posted on the TikTok account @sanika.f ( archived…

Is the United Kingdom cutting back on military training for Ukrainians? No, that's not true: This is not a cut in the military training program as a whole, but a reduction of exercises at the Lydd Ranges training area by a third. The UK Ministry of Defense took the step in response to complaints by residents about the noise and…

Did a graffiti mural of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a "cannibal" eating a ZSU - the Armed Forces of Ukraine - soldier's arm recently appear on a residential building in Berlin, Germany? No, that's not true: The image is fabricated and the building with the alleged mural is in Warsaw, Poland. An episode containing the claim was shared on…

Did the President of Belarus conscript his son Nikolai into the private military company (PMC) Wagner, instead of enrolling him in a summer camp? No, that´s not true: This claim was featured in a post from a Ukrainian satirical website "SRIA Novosti" known for publishing fictional content. The Telegram channel profile warns that the information published is intentionally fabricated (translated…

Did the BBC, the British public service broadcaster, state that Wagner Group chief and leader of the failed mutiny against the Kremlin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, is alive? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found that BBC never reported such information. On September 2, 2023, the claim appeared in a video (archived here) posted on the TikTok account @ruporzdravomisliya. The graphic overlay…

Did the Polish weekly Myśl Polska disclose the number of Polish mercenaries lost in the Ukraine-Russia conflict? No, that's not true: No such article has ever been published. Mateusz Piskorski, from the editorial board of the magazine, denied that Myśl Polska ever reported on that, asking to check on the source of this alleged piece of information. The claim appeared…

Was there a billboard with the face of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the text "I have made 10 times more than the Barbie movie" installed in New York? No, that's not true: Such a banner does not exist. The story appeared in a video (archived here) where it was published by pravda_bel on August 10, 2023. Videos with the…

Will the new draft law restrict Ukrainian teenagers from traveling abroad because of mobilization? No, that's not true: The changes to the regulations on temporary departure out of Ukraine for children 16 to 18 will require an accompanying parent and the consent of the other or a confidant. Teenagers older than 18 will be able to travel unaccompanied. The claim…