Your hourly fact checks

All English Fact Checks

False: No, this herbal recipe won't 'cleanse' the uterus – consult doctors instead IN SHORT: A Facebook post claims its recommended recipe will "cleanse" the uterus. But experts say there is no evidence of this. "This recipe helps cleanse your uterus as well as your accumulated bad blocked tubes responsible for some infertility," reads a post on Facebook . The  (Source: Africa Check)

False: No, infusion of eggplant leaves can't 'wash' kidneys – see a doctor instead IN SHORT: A Facebook post circulating in Nigeria claims that the leaves of the garden egg plant, or aubergine, can be used to "wash" the kidneys. Experts say this isn't true. In a video posted on Facebook in Nigeria, a person is seen speaking in a mixture of Yoruba and English, e (Source: Africa Check)

False: The European Parliament has declared that COVID-19 is a fraud at a recent conference. The claim that the European Parliament has declared COVID-19 a fraud is false. A video from a conference held in a parliamentary building is used to support the claim. The event was hosted by a group of MEPs and featured speakers with a history of spreading COVID misinformation. A European Parliament representative told AAP FactCheck it was not an official event and the European Union’s legislative body does not support its views. (Source: Australian Associated Press - AAP)

Following pandemic s...: Following pandemic school closures 100,000 children have disappeared off school rolls. To come on to the next scandal, our schools were shut. That is a disaster that has stalled educational improvement, and 100,000 kids—ghost kids—have disappeared off the rolls. Bob Seely MP, 19 June 2023 . During a debate in Parliament on 19 June regarding the Privileges Committee (Source: Full Fact)

Miscaptioned: WNBA Championship parade video miscaptioned as 2023 NBA Championship parade A video showing aerial views of the WNBA Championship victory parade in Chicago in 2021 has been mislabeled in online posts mocking sparse turnout for the 2023 NBA Championship victory parade for the Denver Nuggets. “Nobody showed up to the Denver Nuggets championship parade,” re (Source: Reuters)

False: Photograph from the wedding of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's daughter. Vishvas News investigation determined that the viral claim is false. The picture does not depict Nirmala Sitharaman's daughter but rather captures the marriage ceremony of the renowned Indian cricketer Prasidh Krishna. In the image, Rachna, the wife of Krishna, is seated on her f (Source: Vishvasnews)

False: Video of Lionel Messi saying he would play in a friendly against Indonesia A video of Lionel Messi has been viewed millions of times in Indonesian-language posts that falsely claim it shows the Argentine football player saying he would participate in a friendly match between Argentina and Indonesia on June 19, 2023. But the Indonesian subtitles are not an accurate translation of Messi's words, which were taken from a press interview he gave that was unrelated to the friendly match. The match between the two countries took place without him. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)

False: Fictional New Mexico emergency broadcast circulates online A video circulating online that purports to show an Emergency Alert System broadcast warning of an emergency at a New Mexico research facility is fabricated, a spokesperson for the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security said. The clip has been online since at least 2015, uplo (Source: Reuters)

False: Earth risks cataclysmic magnetic pole reversal Videos viewed millions of times on social media claim Earth's magnetic poles are set to reverse and cause widespread disaster, which may help explain global warming. This is false; while the poles can switch, scientists have refuted the so-called "Adam and Eve theory," saying no change is imminent and that it would not be cataclysmic. (Source: Agence France-Presse - AFP)

False: Viral video showing plane landing on dusty airstrip not from Kenya IN SHORT: Renegade Air has successfully launched a new route in Kenya but false claims around that achievement have also flown on social media. Its first flight to Homa Bay county did not land on a dusty airstrip. On 12 June 2023, Kenyan airline Renegade Air launched a new route, (Source: Africa Check)

False: President Bola Tinubu debunks claim that Nigerian government has approved 114% salary increase for president, governors and other public officeholders IN SHORT: There have been widespread reports in Nigeria in both traditional and social media that a staggering 114% salary increase for public officeholders, including the president and his deputy, has been approved. But this has been denounced by the presidency and the revenue c (Source: Africa Check)

Mcontext: South Africa's home affairs department 'giving jobs to Zimbabweans?' No, waivers for Zimbabwe Exemption Permit holders misunderstood IN SHORT: South Africa's Department of Home Affairs has clarified that their approval of waiver applications are meant to allow Zimbabwe Exemption Permit holders in the country to apply for other visas. A tweet circulating in South Africa in June 2023 claims that the country's ho (Source: Africa Check)

Scam: Beware of scammers impersonating lottery platform Zoom Lifestyle on Facebook IN SHORT: Africa Check has investigated many fake money-making schemes. This Facebook account impersonating popular Nigerian musician Peter Okoye's lottery platform is yet another scam. "WELCOME TO ZOOMLIFESTYLE Everyday is Winning day once you are okoye Peter fans," reads a post (Source: Africa Check)

False: No, this TikTok video does not show 'hidden' photos from the Kenyan starvation cult IN SHORT: A video on TikTok claims to reveal never-seen-before photos of starving people in Kenya's Shakahola forest, the site of mass starvation deaths allegedly encouraged by a self-declared pastor. But the photos shown are old and not from Kenya. A video posted on TikTok on 2  (Source: Africa Check)

Scam: Kenyans beware, these Facebook pages offering big discounts on water tanks are trying to scam you IN SHORT: "Kentank", a brand name used by one of Kenya's major water tank manufacturers, is being used by at least two fake accounts on Facebook to scam the public. Don't fall for their up to 40% discounts. Facebook pages Kentanks and Kentank plastics are advertising water tanks  (Source: Africa Check)

Scam: Nigeria's corruption agency distances itself from social media posts advertising exam 'past questions and answers' IN SHORT: The ICPC says it has not published any past recruitment exams with answers. The documents circulating online may be aimed at scamming people. A post circulating on Facebook in June 2023 claims that Nigeria's Independent Corrupt Practices & Other Related Offences Commiss (Source: Africa Check)

Missing Context: Greta Thunberg said in 2018 that the world would end in five years' time. A tweet shared by Greta Thunberg in 2018 did not warn that the world would end in five years, as some on social media have implied. False or misleading claims online have the potential to harm individuals, groups and democratic processes and institutions. Online claims can spread (Source: Full Fact)

Partially False: Bordeaux street attack suspect was born in France A man suspected of assaulting a 73-year-old woman and her 7-year-old granddaughter on a street in Bordeaux on June 19 was born in France, contrary to claims being made online that he is an African migrant. The incident happened at around 5:30pm on Cours de la Martinique, accordin (Source: Reuters)

Miscaptioned: Video of people surrounding ambulance is not related to Illinois 2023 shooting A video of people surrounding an Alameda County Emergency Medical Services ambulance and leaning against it while they dance is from the aftermath of a shooting at a Juneteenth celebration in California in 2021, not the shooting incident in Willowbrook, Illinois, outside Chicago  (Source: Reuters)

All German Fact Checks

Unbelegt: Arne Burkhardt zeige in einer Präsentation, dass bei gegen Covid-19 geimpften Männern die Spermien fast vollständig durch das Spike-Protein ersetzt worden seien. Seit Beginn der Corona-Pandemie hält sich dasunbelegteGerücht, die Covid-19-Impfung mache unfruchtbar, hartnäckig. Behauptungen bezogen sich dabei oft auf vermeintliche Folgen für Frauen, aber nicht nur. „Sperma weg, nur noch Spike-Proteine da!“, heißt es aktuell online./n/nBezog (Source: Correctiv)