Does this video on TikTok depict the emir of Qatar, Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, threatening to halt natural gas supplies unless Israel ceases its bombing of Gaza? No, that's not true: The video is from 2017 and the emir does not mention cutting off the gas supply. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok by @kunta_kintey00…

Did the commander of the United Arab Emirates Air Force, Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Al-Alawi, visit Israel after the start of the conflict between Israel and Hamas in early October 2023, as shown in a video on social media? No, that's not true: The video shows Alawi's visit to Israel in 2021. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on…

Did Hamas militants in Gaza use children as human shields while firing mortar rounds toward Israel in October 2023? No, that's not true: This video is from the Syrian civil war and was posted in 2014. The claim appeared in several posts like this video (archived here) on TikTok on October 26, 2023, with the title "Hamas Human Shields." The…

Did an Israeli aircraft release a rocket on Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip as they collected drinking water from a reservoir, resulting in casualties, during the Hamas-Israel crisis in October 2023? No, that's not true: The footage was actually taken in Sudan, not Gaza, on October 12, 2023. The terrain in the aerial footage points to a desert-like environment…

Was the fire that broke out during a wedding celebration in northern Iraq premeditated and not caused by fireworks set off in the wedding hall? No, that's not true: The Iraqi government's investigation into the incident said it was accidental and caused by fireworks that ignited decorations on the ceiling. Many Arab and international media covered the tragedy that struck…

Did Israel bomb the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, the third holiest site in Islam? No, that's not true: Reverse photo searches show the photo circulating online that claims to show damage to the Al-Aqsa Mosque actually shows a damaged mosque in Gaza. No credible news outlet has repeated the claim about Al-Aqsa and The Ministry of Awqaf and Religious…

Was Russian President Vladimir Putin received by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank in the days following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel? No, that's not true: The claim uses video from a 2020 visit by Putin. The Russian president had not visited the Palestinian territory at the time of writing in October 2023. The claim…

Did Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi threaten his subjects that he would destroy the country if they failed to re-elect him for a third six-year term in the upcoming presidential elections scheduled for December 10 to December 12, 2023? No, that's not true: El-Sisi said in Cairo on September 30, 2023, that if his countrymen were unhappy with his leadership or…

Did Israel's chief of general staff of the Israeli Defense Forces, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, accuse Algeria of being behind the Hamas attack on Israel? No, that's not true: There is no evidence he made such an accusation. Moreover, the person in the photo circulating with the claim is the former chief of general staff, Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi. The…

Did the Portuguese football star Cristiano Ronaldo wave a Palestinian flag to express solidarity with the Palestinians following an October 2023 football match? No, that's not true: The player shown in the video is Moroccan footballer Jaway el-Yamiq, who waved the Palestinian flag following Morocco's victory over Canada during the group stage of the 2022 World Cup. It was posted…

Does video show Egyptian army soldiers entering Palestinian territory or being deployed to the border between Egypt, Gaza and Israel? No, that's not true. The video is old and it shows Yemeni army soldiers marching in Marib, Yemen. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) where it was published on TikTok by @mnbmnb741 on October 8, 2023, with a…

Did the measles-rubella vaccine, which Jordan plans to use to inoculate some 2.2 million schoolchildren this fall, kill 15 children in neighboring Syria in 2014? No, that's not true: The Jordanian health minister said the vaccine had been adulterated with a muscle relaxant in 2014. The World Health Organization and UNICEF vouched for the vaccine in a joint statement posted…

Does a video posted on TikTok show "Hamas taking Israeli fighter jets" during the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel? No, that's not true: The video was first posted on September 14, 2023, and thus predates the current Hamas-Israel conflict. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok by @daleupright on October 7, 2023, with the following overlay…

Did famous Egyptian actor Hani Ramzi endorse opposition politician and presidential candidate Ahmed Tantawi? No, that's not true: Ramzi posted a video explaining that the message he shared on social media was meant for a friend with the same last name. He said he did not endorse Tantawi in the upcoming Egyptian presidential elections, scheduled for December 2024. The claim…

Did Russian President Vladimir Putin declare Islam to be Russia's second state religion? No, that's not true: Russia is a secular state and does not have a state religion. According to its constitution, no state religion may be established, and the state and religion are considered separate. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok by @tahaaljlal on…

Is cancer not a disease and can it be cured by a sugar-free diet, warm lemon water and coconut oil, as the purported "Dr. Gubta" claims? No, that's not true. According to credible health and medical sources, cancer is considered a disease and there is no evidence that a sugar-free diet, warm lemon water and coconut oil can cure it.…

Does this video show the tragic incident when fire broke out at a wedding party in Northern Iraq? No, that's not true: This video is from 2010 and is in Lebanon, not Iraq. The claim appeared in several posts like this video (archived here) on TikTok by @mohanad_1987 on September 27, 2023, with banners (translated from Arabic to English by…

Did the World Health Organization (WHO) predict a new virus called "Disease X" that will turn humans into zombies and that is expected to hit the world soon, leading to lockdowns and deaths in the millions? No, that's not true. The WHO did not prophesize that there would be a "Disease X," but it launched a global scientific process in…

Did BRICS publish a banknote for the group's new currency that is meant to replace the dollar in financial transactions? No, that's not true: The Russian ambassador to South Africa presented a commemorative BRICS banknote as a souvenir to a United Arab Emirates counterpart at the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit in South Africa in 2023.…

Did Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, threaten Syrian refugees in Turkey with the revocation of their citizenship if they did not return to Syria in six months? No, that's not true. There is no evidence that the Syrian president made such a statement. In fact, in his recent interview with Sky News Arabia, Assad claimed that less than half a…