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All English Fact Checks
False: Muslim man responsible for Odisha train crash After India's worst train disaster in decades killed at least 288 people, social media posts fanning the conspiracy theory that Muslims were responsible for the crash shared a photo of a man they identified as "Mohammed Sharif Ahmed", the manager of a railway station near the crash site. The posts racked up thousands of shares, but an Indian Railways spokesperson told AFP the man in the picture was in fact a railway employee with a different name and working in another part of the country. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)
False: Video shows execution at Debre Elias Monastery Online users have shared a graphic video of uniformed men shooting two people in the back of the head, claiming it was filmed in May 2023 at a monastery in northern Ethiopia where the military said it carried out an attack on militants. But the killing actually occurred in a different place: exclusive footage obtained by AFP Fact Check proves the clip shows an execution in the western Benishangul-Gumuz region, which has seen recurring violence linked to ethnic tensions. The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission confirmed the location of what it described as an "extrajudicial execution". Local reports and sources indicate the incident took place in early 2022. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)
False: Ninety-three per cent of children who change their gender end up regretting it. The claim 93 per cent of children who undergo gender transition later regret it is false. Studies assessing levels of regret among transgender people mostly put the figure at about one per cent or lower. (Source: Australian Associated Press - AAP)
Not The Same: Judge Aileen Cannon, who was assigned to the Donald Trump documents case, appeared at a September 3, 2022, political rally for the former president in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Not The SameDid Judge Aileen Cannon, who was assigned to the Donald Trump documents case, appear at a September 3, 2022, political rally for the former president in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania? No, that's not true: There's no evidence to suggest she was at the event but a glib cap (Source: Lead Stories)
Only Platforms: Bill C-11, Online Streaming Act will censor social media users Only PlatformsHas Canada's Bill C-11 caused Canadians' social media posts to be censored, including posts about Canadian wildfires? No, that's not true: Bill C-11, also known as the Online Streaming Act, became law in Canada in April 2023. It requires that online streaming platfo (Source: Lead Stories)
False: Easter celebration in Saudi Arabia in 2023 A video of a parade featuring an image of Jesus Christ carrying the cross has been viewed thousands of times on Facebook and YouTube in posts that falsely claim it shows an Easter celebration in Saudi Arabia in 2023. The clip was actually taken during a Palm Sunday procession in Guatemala in early April 2023. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)
False: Sweden declares sex as a sport Viral claims about Sweden’s sports authorities approving sex as a national sport hogged global headlines on social media in June. However, the reports are false: the Swedish Sports Confederation confirmed rejecting an application for official recognition of sex as a sport. A "sex contest" hosted by SSF gave rise to the claims. The event was not endorsed by the national sports body. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)