Tag: Lead Stories

Fact Check: Israeli Prisoner Alexander ‘Turbanov’ Did NOT Make a Statement About Captors’ Kindness — Wrong Name And Made-Up Quote

Did Alexander Turbanov, an Israeli man who was held prisoner by Hamas, make a statement sympathizing with his captors upon his release? No, that’s not true: This made-up quote went viral on Feb. 15, 2025 and resurfaced in Oct. 2025. The man in question is not named Turbanov, his name is Alexander Troufanov. The quote attributed to Troufanov was posted on X by social media influencer Khaled Safi, who clarified in a follow-up post that he wrote these words “on his behalf”.

The made-up quote appeared in a post (archived here) published on Facebook on Feb. 16, 2025 by the page Towards Understanding Islam. The post begins:

A MUST READ!!

Today, the Israeli prisoner Alexander Turbanov, who was released, made a statement that shocked the occupying Israel:

“Your kindness has been engraved in my conscience forever. During the 498 days I lived among you, despite the aggression and crimes you endured, I learned the true meaning of manhood, pure heroism, and respect for humanity and values.

This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot from facebook.com/share/p/1Chr9PtU8c.

Alexander Turbanov is not the name of the hostage who was released on Feb. 15, 2025. A photo of the exchange ceremony for the three hostages appears in a US News & World Report article (archived here) titled, “Israel and Hamas Complete Their Latest Exchange as Ceasefire’s First Phase Has Just 2 Weeks Left”. Troufanov is pictured wearing a red hoodie. The photo caption reads:

Israeli hostages Iair Horn, 46, left, Sagui Dekel Chen, 36, center left, and Alexander Troufanov, 29, right, are escorted by Hamas and islamic Jihad fighters as they are handed over to the Red Cross in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot from usnews.com/news/world/articles/2025-02-14/hamas-is-set-to-free-3-more-israeli-hostages-after-dispute-threatened-to-reignite-war-in-gaza.

On Feb. 15, 2025 Khaled Safi @KhaledSafi made a post (archived here) on X in Arabic (pictured below left). The post included an 8-second video clip showing Troufanov in the same setting as the photo above- escorted by two armed fighters. Although not identical, the auto-translation of Safi’s post to English (pictured below right) follows the structure and sentiment of the quote included in the Facebook post.

Your beauty is etched in my conscience, for during the 498 days I lived among you, I learned the true meaning of manhood, pure heroism, and respect for humanity and values, despite the aggression and crimes you were subjected to.
You were the besieged yet free, while I was the captive, and you were the guardians of my life. You cared for me like a compassionate father cares for his children, preserving my health, dignity, and elegance. You did not allow hunger or humiliation to touch me, even though I was in the hands of men fighting for their land and their stolen rights, against the government of my country, which perpetrates the most heinous genocide against a besieged people.

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot from x.com/KhaledSafi/status/1890679402943393905.

Many people replied to Safi asking for clarification. He responded on Feb. 15, 2025 (archived here):

Notice and clarification: These are not the words of the captive, but rather I wrote them on his behalf, describing his condition, his gratitude, his thanks, and his bowing to the men of the resistance.

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot from x.com/KhaledSafi/status/1890820463833612646.

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October 17, 2025
Fact Check: Music Lessons Have NOT Been Banned In Hamburg Because Muslims Consider Them Haram — The German News Report Is About A Joint Statement Against Intolerance and Exclusion

Did the public school system in Hamburg, Germany ban music lessons to avoid offending Muslims who view them to be forbidden or ‘haram’? No, that’s not true: The Hamburg public schools did no such thing. A German language news report has been misrepresented in social media posts. The report followed the signing of a joint statement by religious representatives and school officials against intolerance and exclusion — a move which was prompted by some incidents of religiously motivated bullying.

The 33-second video clip appeared in a post (archived here) published on X by @realMaalouf on Sept. 29, 2025. The post was captioned:

GERMANY: In Hamburg, music lessons (singing, piano, guitar) are no longer allowed in public schools because music is ‘haram’ in Islam, and it would be considered Islamophobia to impose them on Muslim students. Thoughts?!

Muslims Threaten Classmates
Hamburg takes a clear line against discrimination

This news report was published by welt.de (archived here) on June 25, 2025. The screenshot below shows the German language webpage translated to English. The topic is “Bullying in Hamburg’s schools”. The headline, originally, “„Musikunterricht kann nicht stattfinden, weil man im Islam nicht singt”” reads:

“Music lessons cannot take place because singing is not allowed in Islam.”

These are still isolated cases, but apparently so numerous that the Hamburg Education Senator is now reacting together with Christian, Jewish, and Muslim religious associations. The issue is assaults and discrimination, predominantly by Muslim students. For example, isolated German girls are attacked – they don’t belong here – while others are prevented from attending music lessons because it is haram. These assaults will not be tolerated, not a single one, according to Senator Bekeris.

The Hamburg Catholic Schools Facebook page published a post (archived here) about the signing of the joint statement on June 18, 2025. One photo in the post (pictured below) has a text caption (translated by Google) which reads:

Religious communities take a stand
against intolerance and exclusion

The Facebook post includes the text of the joint statement (translated by Facebook):

Promote and protect Hamburg’s diversity – Hamburg and its religious communities show a stance for a respectful dialogue

Hamburg is a city of cultural and religious diversity.

From this wealth we shape the future of our city. Children and adolescents grow up together and practice with each other early in kindergarten and school. Here they get to know and appreciate each other with their peculiarities and similarities. They realize differences and practice in dialogue resolving conflicts peacefully and constructively.

In Hamburg’s nurseries and schools, there is no place for abuse and discrimination of any kind. Everyone who is responsible in nurseries and schools show attitude when people are abused or are pressured by others themselves. Kindergarten and school show attitude when whole groups are subjected to general suspicion due to unacceptable incidents or individuals are excluded or even defamed because of their belonging to a group.

This attitude corresponds to the values shared by the religious communities and the city, and shaped daily in religious education for all. Mutual respect prohibits any kind of overbearing: no matter who, against whom and especially when coercion is practiced under the cover of supposed religious regulations. All religious communities involved speak out clearly against discrimination and extremism, no matter who they belong to. The religious communities stand for a respectful mutual understanding – with an attitude that draws clear boundaries.

As cooperation partners, the religious communities work closely with the authorities in the context of school and beyond, to shape life in the Hanseatic city by holding a dialogue. This is how they counter discrimination and radicalization. In religious education for all, students learn together, completely regardless of their religious and secular background. They recognize similarities, explore differences, and practice appreciative interaction with cultural and religious diversity. This is how mutual understanding and respectful cooperation are created, which ensure cohesion in our city.

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September 30, 2025
Fact Check: Trump U.S. Attorney Nominee Lindsey Halligan Is NOT The Beauty Pageant Contestant In Viral 2007 Video

Is Lindsey Halligan, the lawyer chosen by President Trump to be the U.S. attorney for the eastern district of Virginia, the same woman made infamous by a viral video of her answer to a question in a 2007 beauty pageant? No, that’s not true: Lauren Caitlin Upton is the woman who, as Miss South Carolina Teen USA, gave a rambling reply to a question onstage at the Miss Teen USA contest in 2007. Halligan competed in the Miss Colorado USA pageant in 2009 and 2010.

The claim appeared in a post (archived here) shared on X on September 24, 2025. It featured the video of Upton’s viral clip next to Halligan answering a reporter’s question at the White House. The caption read:

Donald Trump is going to have one of his former beauty pageant contestants indict his former FBI Director and the current NY Attorney General. I’m sure this is going to go well for her.

This is what the post looked like at the time of writing:

Source: screenshot of X.com by Lead Stories

Halligan’s nomination to be the federal government’s top prosecutor in the judicial district adjacent to the nation’s capital has been criticized because of her lack of prosecutorial experience. She has been a lawyer for 12 years, but has focused on representing insurance companies in disputes with insured property owners before Donald Trump added her to his personal legal team in 2022.

She was a semi-finalist in 2009 and the third runner-up in the Miss Colorado USA (archived here) competitions, which is a preliminary event to the Miss USA pageant that Trump owned at the time. There is no evidence she knew Trump before meeting him at one of his golf clubs in 2021, according to the Washington Post.

The video of Upton was used by JD Vance during the 2024 presidential campaign to mock Vice President Kamala Harris.

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September 25, 2025
Fact Check: Private Jet N888KG Is NOT Part Of Investigation Into Utah Assassination Of Charlie Kirk, As Of September 21, 2025

Is the privately owned aircraft with the tail number N888KG known to be part of the investigation of the assassination of Charlie Kirk? No, that’s not true: On September 21, 2025, FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on social media that the investigation ruled out any connection between the shooting and the plane’s flights on the day Kirk was shot. The jet’s owner publicly denied the accusations that intermittent transponder data from his company’s plane suggested the plane was involved in a conspiracy.

The claim appeared a video (archived here) published on TikTok on September 11, 2025, under the caption:

🚨CHARLIE -KIRK-UPDATE🚨

The clip’s description continued:

Why did this plane disable its radar? Notably, 30 minutes into the flight, it disappeared from ADS-B and reappeared headed back to Provo approximately an hour later. #CharlieKirk #turningpoint #utah #fbi #police

This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at tiktok.com/@ohio.dude.news

The post implied that the allegedly interrupted data flow coming from the jet was irregular and suspicious.

The jet in question was registered to the business address of a marketing company. On September 11, 2025, its CEO Derek Maxfield published a statement (archived here and here) refuting the accusations. His post described a suggestion that the plane had anything to do with the murder as one of the “baseless theories” that has “unfairly impacted” his family. He confirmed that the jet is owned by one of his companies and that a “prescheduled flight” departed at 1:20 pm from the Provo Airport in Utah for Page, Arizona. The statement reads:

Occupants at take-off included two pilots and no passengers. N888KG arrived at the Page, AZ Airport (PGA) at approximately 1:55 pm MT, 12:55 pm local time. Upon arrival, I, Derek Maxfield, boarded N888KG, along with 7 additional passengers for the return trip to PVU. N888KG departed PGA at approximately 1:40 pm local time (2:40 pm MT) and arrived at PVU at approximately 3:15 pm MT.

It continued:

N888KG pilots followed all FAA requirements and protocols, tower directions and the predetermined flight plan. This roundtrip was made at my request and solely for my purposes. Any suggestion that the flights by N888KG yesterday are in any way connected to the tragic shooting of Mr. Kirk is inaccurate, false and without any credible basis of any kind.

Later, on September 21, 2025, FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on X (archived here):

Regarding specific details, such as questions about the plane that allegedly turned off its transponder after departing from an airport near the assassination site, we can share updates when answers are confirmed. After interviews with the pilot and consultation with the FAA, we determined the transponder was not turned off. Incomplete flight data in rural areas caused the apparent gap.

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September 22, 2025
Fact Check: DOCTORED Video Shows Trump Warning Left Not To Poke The Bear Commenting On Charlie Kirk’s Death — Satire

Is this a real video of Presiden Trump saying the far right doesn’t exist and that “the left” is “poking a sleeping bear with sticks” in remarks on Charlie Kirk’s death? No, that’s not true: The viral clip contained AI generated sound that doesn’t match the original footage published by the White House and was published by an account the has the word “satire” in its bio. The authentic audio mentions neither bears nor Charlie Kirk .

The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X on September 13, 2025. It opened:

Trump warns: ‘Don’t poke the bear.’ Unreal.

The post contained a video in which Trump appeared to be saying the following:

I really shouldn‘t say it, but I think I‘ve got to say it. The far right in our country doesn‘t exist....yet. The far left, the loony tune brigade, however, is quite real.. real as real gets.. as serious as cancer. Cancer not good. But people forget that I‘m a moderate. Charlie was a moderate as well. But the psycho left has been poking a sleeping bear with sticks, calling the bear names, stealing the bear‘s wallet, and they‘ve actually begun shooting the bear. But this isn‘t an ordinary bear, folks. No, no, it‘s not. This, of course, is what scholars refer to as a metaphor. So if I was a miserable lefty, who hated my dad and thought John Oliver was a real looker, I‘d pause here and ask myself, do I want to keep poking this bear, or do I want my face ripped off in a horrific bear accident?

This is what the post looked like on X at the time of writing:

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at x.com/MaverickDarby

In reality, however, Trump did not say any of the words attributed to him in the clip on social media.

A reverse image search led to the original footage published by the White House on September 2, 2025. In that recording, Trump announced the relocation of the U.S. Space Command headquarters to Huntsville, Alabama, and answered a series of questions, but none of them were related to the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk that would happen eight days later (archived here). For the same reason, Trump couldn’t have used the past tense to describe the political leanings of the then-alive activist.

Lead Stories additionally searched the automatically generated transcript: In the authentic recording, Trump said nothing about bears or Charlie Kirk.

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of video by the White House on YouTube.com

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of video by the White House on YouTube.com

Hiya, a tool from the InVid verification plugin, showed that the audio in the version of the recording that spread on social media was created by AI:

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of the InVid verification plugin

Furthermore, at the very final second, the clip from X itself showed a definition of the adjective “unreal”, hinting that the video was not authentic:

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at x.com/MaverickDarby

The bio of the @MavericDarby account on X (archived here) says it creates satire:

Mostly satire. I make videos, but the podcast is 🎷

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September 14, 2025
Fact Check: The White House Did NOT Suddenly Suspend President Trump’s Schedule On August 27-29, 2025 — Fake News Report

Did the White House suddenly suspend President Trump’s official schedule on August 27, 28, and 29, sparking speculation that “something extremely serious may have happened” to Trump? No, that’s not true: Speculation about Trump’s health was viral on social platforms on Friday, August 27, with false claims that Trump’s schedule was canceled without explanation, but those rumors were false. Lead Stories is a member of the White House Correspondents Association and our editors are routinely emailed the President’s schedule in advance. The schedules for that Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were never revised. A viral video making the claim used a fake voice and an AI-detection tool concluded with 100% confidence it was written by AI.

The claim appeared in a video (archived here) post on the @breakingnews_usa1 account on TikTok on August 30, 2025. The caption on the video read “Attention! Explosive rumors are shaking the United States!” The narration, read by an AI clone of MSNBC host Ari Melber’s voice:

In the past few hours, speculation suggesting that something extremely serious may have happened to President Donald Trump. It all began when the president’s official schedule was suddenly suspended without any convincing explanation, sparking doubts about his true state of health.

This is what the post looked like at the time of writing:

Source: screenshot of TikTok by Lead Stories

The narration continued:

Trump, who was recently diagnosed with a delicate vascular condition, had already shown signs of fragility in public appearances. Now the situation has grown even more mysterious. All official commitments have been canceled, and the White House website has stopped displaying future events, fueling suspicions that key information may be hidden from the public. So far no medical updates or official statements have been released. This absolute silence, instead of calming concerns, has only intensified a wave of speculation across social media, where millions are asking what might really be happening behind the scenes of power. The unavoidable question now echoes everywhere. Is Donald Trump still fully in command or is the nation facing an unprecedented crisis being kept in the shadows?

Lead Stories submitted the narration text to the GPTZero AI Detection tool, which concluded it was 100% AI made.

Source: screenshot of White House email by Lead Stories

No changes were announced for Wednesday.

From an email sent Wednesday evening titled “DAILY GUIDANCE AND PRESS SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2025″:

Source: screenshot of White House email by Lead Stories

Trump, as scheduled, signed several executive orders in the Oval Office Thursday afternoon. You can read them on the White House website here (archived here), here (archived here), here (archived here), and here (archived here).

From an email sent Thursday evening titled “DAILY GUIDANCE AND PRESS SCHEDULE FOR FRIDAY, AUGUST 29, 2025″:

Source: screenshot of White House email by Lead Stories

No changes were announced for Friday.

The weekend schedule, emailed Friday evening, listed no public events for Saturday. In fact, President Trump was seen golfing at his Virginia golf course Saturday morning.

The video was edited with still images of Trump with a voice-over by the fake Melber voice. Lead Stories reviewed the full Friday night, August 29, 2025, edition of The Beat With Ari Melber (archived here). It did not include the segment in the TikTok video.

Most of the 38 videos on @breakingnews_usa1 TikTok account (archived here) at the time of writing are focused on false claims about Trump’s health or other misfortunes, using a fake version of Ari Melber’s voice.

Source: screenshot of TikTok by Lead Stories

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August 31, 2025
Fact Check: Trump Did NOT Order U.S. Marshals To Remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook After She Challenged The President’s Firing Of Her

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Did President Trump order U.S. Marshals to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook from office after she challenged his authority to fire her? No, that’s not true: Court rules prevent any action to remove Cook until a judge holds a hearing on her lawsuit filed on August 28, 2025, claiming the president failed to show cause for firing her. An initial hearing was set for Friday, August 29, 2025. The spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service did not reply when Lead Stories asked through a phone call and email if the president had issued such an order. There are no credible reports that he did.

The claim appeared in a post (archived here) published on X by @defense_civil25 on August 28, 2025. The message above a photo of Cook read:

🚨Alert: President Trump orders US Marshals to remove Defiant Fed Governor Lisa Cook after she refuses to step down!

This is what the post looked like at the time of writing:

Source: screenshot of X.com by Lead Stories

Cook’s lawyers filed a motion for a temporary restraining order while their lawsuit is going through the courts. U.S. District Court rules in the District of Columbia prevent Cook’s removal until the first hearing, which is set for 10 a.m. EDT Friday.

When Lead Stories called the spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service to ask for a confirmation or denial, she asked that we email our questions and the post making the claim. She has not replied to that emailed inquiry at the time of writing. We will update this article if we get a response.

A Google search (archived here) for the keywords “marshals order remove cook” found no credible reports that Trump had issued such an order. It returned only links to the post we are fact checking and copies of it.

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August 28, 2025
Fact Check: Viral Video Of Delivery Drone Dropping Car Battery On Parked Car Was An April Fool’s Hoax To Promote A Parts Store

Does a viral video show a real instance of a delivery drone dropping a car battery through the windshield of a parked car? No, that’s not true: An auto repair business created the video as an April Fool’s Day marketing stunt. The video has been on the repair shop’s YouTube channel since 2015. Few, if any, civilian drones available in 2015 could have lifted a standard lead-acid car battery.

The 2015 video was added to an August 27, 2025 X post (archived here) on the @InternetHOF account under this title:

A drone was testing a delivery when it stopped mid-air and dropped a car battery on a woman’s windshield

This is what the opening frames of the video looked like at the time this fact check was written:

Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of video posted at x.com/InternetH0F.

The version posted to X in 2025 is a low-resolution copy of the original, which was posted on April Fool’s day (April 1) 2015 on the YouTube account of G&C Tire and Auto Service, a Manassas and Chantilly, Virginia auto repair business. That post, with elaborate fake incident reports to the Federal Aviation Administration, promised G&C was tireless in innovating to improve service, but much safer and more reliable than drone delivery of auto parts.

In the copy posted to X in 2025, at 00:41, a green and white car battery falls from above, crushing the red car’s windshield and roof. Next, a small consumer-grade drone falls, bouncing off the car’s roof rack before clattering to the pavement beside the car.

Hobbyists tested similar drones of that size in 2015, finding maximum lifting ability was 2.5 pounds (archived here). Searching 2015 drone manufacturer sites, Lead Stories found specifications sheets for similar white plastic drones did not address payload, as they were designed only to carry the onboard video cameras. Meanwhile a standard lead acid car battery of the size shown, typically weighs at least 30 pounds, but more likely up to 50 pounds:

Image Source: Graphic assembled by Lead Stories, using screenshots from original video at G&C Tire and Auto Service YouTube channel.

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August 27, 2025
Fact Check: Robin Westman NOT Clifford Thomas Phillps Jr. Is The Suspect In Minneapolis Annunciation Catholic School Shooting

Is Clifford Thomas Phillips Jr. the suspect in the shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis? No, that’s not true: The shooter has been identified by law enforcement officials as Robin Westman. He died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The name Clifford Thomas Phillips Jr. was already circulating on social media before the shooting in Minneapolis happened. In social media posts Phillips’ name was already falsely associated with at least two university shooting hoaxes, at Villanova University in Philadelphia and the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. There was no shooting at either university.

The incorrect name of a suspect appeared in a post (archived here) published on X by @DrDillDoeAlpha on Aug. 27, 2025. The post was captioned:

🚨BREAKING 🚨

The shooter at the Minneapolis church has been identified as Clifford Thomas Phillps Jr.

Phillips travelled from his home in Columbus, OH and attacked the chruch

Phillips is a radical leftist who runs the YouTube channel “CTP Know the Truth”

The post included this photo:

Image Source: Lead Stories screenshot of @DrDillDoeAlpha post on X

The @DrDillDoeAlpha account has posted the same photo with the same false caption three times, changing only the location of the shooting. The name is also spelled unusually, Phillps. An Aug. 21, 2025 post on X (archived here) said Phillips was the shooter at Villanova University, an Aug. 25, 2025 post (archived here) said Phillips was the shooter at the University of Arkansas, and a Aug. 27 2025 post (archived here) said he was the shooter at the Minneapolis church. AP News reported on Aug. 26, 2025 that in recent days false reports of an active shooter have hit at least twelve campuses, including Villanova and the University of Arkansas.

Image Source: Lead Stories screenshots of @DrDillDoeAlpha posts on X

At a press conference streamed live on YouTube at 11 a.m. on August 27, it was confirmed that the gunman was dead, 19 minutes, 45 seconds in. NBC News reported that Robin Westman had been identified as the suspect by multiple law enforcement sources.

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August 27, 2025