Are realistic-looking face masks of old men being sold in Ukraine so men can avoid receiving a summons? No, that's not true: The mask producer denied such a claim and stated they refuse to sell masks for such purposes. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok by alexandr_turner on January 5, 2024. The caption on the video…

Were a restaurant patio and a bar, a fish market and a food shop opened on the premises of St. Mark's Church in London? No, that's not true: The church was deconsecrated, transformed from sacred to secular use in 1974, and was transformed into a gastronomic hub in 2019. The claim appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) published by…

Did Elon Musk pose in a T-shirt printed with folkloric-looking Ukrainians and captioned with Russian swear words? No, that's not true: The image was manipulated from a photo of Musk taken during the Sundance Film Festival in 2015. Musk had appeared wearing a shirt featuring the American rock band Tesla. The claim appeared on TikTok (archived here) on January 9,…

Is there a mandatory payment of 100 hryvnia for residents in Ukraine to access a bomb shelter during an air alert? No, that's not true: The Department of Press and Information of Ukraine's Ministry of Defence told Lead Stories that the claim is false, categorizing it as disinformation. Furthermore, Lead Stories found no evidence supporting this claim. The claim appeared…

Правда ли, что Индия сняла санкции на импорт белорусского калия, тем самым открыв новые возможности для соглашений и деловых предприятий между Индией и Беларусью? Нет, это неправда. Индия никогда не присоединялась к санкциям США и ЕС и торговым ограничениям на какие-либо белорусские товары и услуги, поэтому и санкции отменять было не нужно. Сокращение экспорта белорусских калийных удобрений в Индию связано…

Did Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy purchase two luxury yachts worth $75 million with the help of his close friends, used as proxies? No, that's not true: The two yachts are still for sale. The claim appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) published by belvestnik.bel121 (this account seems to have vanished) on December 1, 2023, with a text overlay (translated…

Did a caretaker of Ukrainian origin cause damage of 100,000 euros ($110,275) by breaking a statue in a gallery of modern art in Paris? No, that's not true: The sculpture in this post, by Swedish-born artist Anna Uddenberg, has been displayed in various exhibitions and remains untouched by acts of vandalism. A janitor named Valery Tarashchuk, reportedly of Ukrainian origin…

Did the Čemodāns restaurant in the Latvian capital refuse to serve Russian actress Chulpan Khamatova and was she even kicked out for communicating in Russian? No, that's not true: Both the actress and the restaurant denied it. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on the TikTok account @user9096623588115 on November 24, 2023. It was also shared by the…

Did a Ukrainian TV host "ask all unmarried women to move in with unmarried men" in order to save on energy and heating in a recent broadcast shared on social media? No, that's not true: In an email to Lead Stories, the TV channel said that such an announcement was never made or broadcast on the network. The claim appeared…

Did no officials meet German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at Doha airport when he arrived for a visit to Qatar? No, that's not true: Sultan bin Saad Al-Muraikhi, Qatar's minister of state for foreign affairs, arrived to receive him. However, Steinmeier waited at the exit of the plane for nearly half an hour. The claim appeared in a video (archived here)…

Are children trafficked to pedophiles at the Ukrainian-Polish border? No, that's not true: Poland's Government Information Centre stated that the claim of selling children for pedophilia at the Ukrainian-Polish border is disinformation. Lead Stories found no evidence supporting this claim. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on the TikTok account @alexandr_turner on November 27, 2023. Russian media outlets…

Did Lithuanian, Latvian and Polish presidents receive a request to move aside due to lack of space during a group photo session at the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP28 in Dubai on December 1, 2023? No, that's not true: The leaders of the Baltic countries and Poland boycotted the group photo session to protest the presence of Belarusian President…

Did Ukrainians in the city of Zhytomyr receive leaflets inviting them to vote for current Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny as the new president of Ukraine? No, that's not true: Pictures purportedly showing such leaflets have been shared as Russian propaganda, along with the alleged candidacy of Zaluzhny in an upcoming election in Ukraine, according to…

Did Lithuanians voice their opinion on closing border crossings with neighboring Belarus? No, that's not true: The claim is based on a statement by the vice-chancellor and head of the National Crisis Management Centre of Lithuania, Vilmantas Vitkauskas, taken out of context. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok by sotniktiktok on November 22, 2023, under the…

Has CNN released a billboard advertisement in New York City saying "Kyiv is all over"? No, that's not true: A CNN representative told Lead Stories that CNN never produced such an ad, and Lead Stories found no evidence that the ad shown in videos on social media ever existed. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on the TikTok…

Did a 17-year-old Ukrainian teenager lose his life on the battlefield, fighting with the Armed Forces of Ukraine? No, that's not true: The man being referred to in a video circulating on social media, Volodymyr Sachala, was 26, not 17, when he died. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok published by okupantttt on December 7, 2023.…

Was a new law introduced by the Lithuanian government to impose a rain tax as a response to budget deficits caused by sanctions, starting at the beginning of 2024? No, that's not true: Lithuania does not have a rain tax. However, the government has enacted a new law that mandates registration for users of surface water. This regulation applies to…

Did the former adviser to Ukraine's president's office announce an "information bomb" at the beginning of 2024 that would reveal the truth about Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, while claiming the support of influential Ukrainian armed forces generals? No, that's not true: Oleksiy Arestovich announced he did not make these statements, and the video appears to be manipulated. TikTok account @belvestnik.bel121 posted…

Does a video on social media show "thousands of U.S. Marines landing in Israel," to assist Israeli forces in the fight against Hamas? No, that's not true: The video predates the 2023 Hamas-Israel conflict. It is from June 2022 and features the arrival of the U.S. 101st Airborne Division in Romania, to support the V Army Corps mission to strengthen…

Правда ли, что латвийские спецслужбы вербуют туристов на границе с Беларусью? Пытались ли силовые структуры Латвии завербовать мужчину, направлявшегося в Беларусь, на латвийском пограничном пункте пропуска «Pāternieki»? Нет, это неправда. Министерство иностранных дел Латвии сообщило Lead Stories, что это дезинформация. Кроме того, Lead Stories не нашли никаких доказательств, подтверждающих, что латвийские спецслужбы вербуют туристов на белорусской границе. Данное утверждение появилось…