Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric in traditional media and social networks are actively distributing a video showing a large line in Chernihiv for free bread. They say that this indicates hunger and the unhappy state of people in Ukraine, caused, in particular, by “European integration”. However, this is manipulation.

The analysts of the StopFake project paid attention to it. They found that the video did not really indicate “hunger and trouble”. In fact, it shows the distribution of bread to people who took part in the gospel ministry in Chernihiv. Representatives of the evangelical church gave bread to their parishioners not because of “hunger”, but as a gift after the service. Humanitarian support of parishioners is standard practice of many evangelical religious organizations around the world and does not indicate “poverty and destruction” in the country. The promotion uses specially baked bread with the inscription “Victory” from the Craft Bakery in Kyiv.

By spreading such manipulations, Russian propaganda is trying to strengthen its narratives about “poverty and destitution” in Ukraine, which allegedly resulted from the “collective West”. Russian propaganda became more active in disseminating this message against the backdrop of news about the start of negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the European Union.

This thesis was spread on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are creating an advertising campaign to “promote” women into the army. And they explain this initiative by saying that women should “encourage” men and get to know them. “Do you want a “real man”: strong, courageous, responsible? You know the answer. All the “real men” are here now - join the Armed Forces of Ukraine”, the video says.

The VoxCheck analysts investigated the case and found that such a video does not belong to the official campaigns of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. For example, this video is not on the official website or on the social media pages of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Moreover, using a reverse search on Google, it was possible to find out that the video was compiled using frames from stock videos. In addition, the video was distributed exclusively in the Russian segment of social networks.

Russian propaganda is once again speculating on the topic of “mobilization of women”. But only doctors and pharmacists must register with the military from October 1, 2023; however, military registration does not mean mobilization or the establishment of restrictions on travel abroad. The Ministry of Health notes: registration is necessary only to summarize data on the existing reserve of doctors in the country. The travel of this category of women is unlimited. To register for military service, this category of women will have three years - until December 31, 2026.

Propagandists also repeatedly appealed to the provisions of the bill, previously promulgated by People’s Deputy Marianna Bezuhla. Possible legislative norms published state that women who are fit for military service will be registered as liable for military service. At the same time, during martial law, women are recruited to combat positions only voluntarily. But during a big press conference that Volodymyr Zelenskyi held on December 19, 2023, he said that he would not sign a bill with clauses on the mobilization of women.

Among other things, we recommend reading another of our documented cases, in which propagandists claimed that Ukrainian doctors and pharmacists were supposedly “escaping” from Ukraine en masse through the so-called mobilization.

Telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric spread information that the Church of the Dog Patron was founded in Ukraine. As proof, the authors add a video in which a man allegedly wearing a priest’s robe and with a headdress in the form of a dog’s head invites parishioners to the Church of the Holy Dog Patron. It's a lie.

Analysts from the VoxCheck project investigated this case and explained that the news about the founding of the church was made up. At the same time, the primary source of the video is the humorous channel in the text. That is, propagandists replicated the satirical video and presented it as a true fact. Moreover, the Ukrainian media did not publish such news. Neither such information was published on social networks or on the website of the dog Patron itself.

Let us remind you that we previously documented a fake that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine canonized the dog Patron.

Read on Censor.NET: The OCU is allegedly praying for Ukraine to join NATO and the EU.

Propagandists say a German charity allegedly ran an advertisement comparing the cost of a Leopard tank sent to Ukraine with the cost of operations for 10 sick children. Like, they wrote about it in Reuters. Some people also claim that after the publication of this information, “defenders of Ukrainian refugees” criticized the philanthropists and called them Nazis due to the fact that German children were more important than Ukrainian ones. However, this is a fake video.

The VoxCheck analysts drew attention to it. They found out that the photos and videos distributed by propagandists were edited. The charitable organization Bunter Kreis Rheinland, against which the fake was created, stated that it did not place such advertising. It was also debunked by a reverse search of video frames via Google Images, which showed that the photos were only being distributed by Russian-language resources or users spreading pro-Russian rhetoric. The subtitles on the video also look like they were added during editing, as they contain errors in how words are related, and in some frames there are additional spaces between words.

Deutsche Welle contacted the charity Bunter Kreis Rheinland, which is listed as the author of the ad, and received confirmation from finance director Ralf Orth that the organization had no connection with the ad as their finances are based on donations and they cannot fund such things in Berlin .

The fake posters featured the logos of Paritätische Wohlfahrtsverband and Aktion Mensch; both organizations denied any involvement in the advertising and said their logos were used without their permission.

The blue inscription on the billboard belongs to the company Wall GmbH, whose representatives stated that they did not produce such billboards at all.

Propagandists spread such fake news to create skepticism among European audiences about the war in Ukraine. Like, why should Europeans waste their resources on other people’s children when they have problems with their own? However, such comparisons are inappropriate, since the life of every child is priceless.

Kremlin media and social network users spreading pro-Russian rhetoric began to spread false information that a Ukrainian military man was allegedly sent to the front in Avdiivka for filming a video in TikTok, and there he allegedly died instantly. In such messages, Russian propaganda adds his humorous video about “cleaning the general’s garage”, next to information about the death of a certain “Valerii Tarashchuk”. However, this is fake.

After disseminating such information, StopFake decided to check whether it was true that the military man was sent to the front because of a video on TikTok and whether he really died there. As it turned out, the information disseminated is not true.

The StopFake specialists began searching for the deceased “Tarashchuk Valerii” using his photograph. The search tool on social networks Search4faces displayed the inactive profile of “Stiopa Ihonin” on VK. Using this name, we managed to find his active pages on Instagram and Facebook with the image of the “deceased” Valeryii Tarashchuk. There are links on Instagram to Tiktok, where they found the video that Russian propaganda used.

The StopFake specialists contacted the user for a comment - whether he really belongs to the video distributed by Russian propaganda and whether he was really sent to Avdiivka because of his TikTok. The author of the video, a soldier of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Stepan Ihonin, confirmed that this is his video, but the description that Russian propaganda provides him is fake. “I was shocked when my friends showed me this news. Everything that is written there is complete nonsense; I have not cleaned the garages of any generals. No one was looking for me and no one sent me to Avdiivka”,  said the military man. They also asked Ihonin about the inscription “I thought I was going to Avdiivka, but I went to clean the general’s garage” from the distributed video. The military man said that he did not make such an inscription. On his Tiktok profile, this video is without any captions and was published long before propagandists began to spread it.

They spread such fabrications to create a false image of Ukraine as a state that restricts the rights and freedoms of its citizens, as well as strictly censoring its media space. Moreover, propagandists resort to this to intimidate Ukrainians. They say that now they can be mobilized for humorous TikTok. Detector Media has repeatedly written about other Russian stories on the topic of mobilization in Ukraine.

Pro-Russian telegram channels write that in the near future Ukrainian troops will supposedly begin to retreat from the left bank of the Kherson region, from the village of Krynky, since the losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces there can be calculated in the dozens. They say that since the end of autumn 2023, the Ukrainian military has been “pushed” there not to expand the bridgehead, but to inevitable death. In the Russian army, supposedly in Krynky there are only a few wounded. In asserting this, propagandists refer to Putin’s statement made during the “direct line” on December 14, 2023. However, this is not true.

The experts from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security analyzed this case. They found out that in fact the situation in the village of Krynky, which is described in propaganda publications, referring to Putin, is significantly exaggerated, as are the “tactical successes” of the Russian occupiers in this direction. In addition, a cemetery of broken Russian equipment has already accumulated near Krynky, which is confirmed by video recordings of precise strikes by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the occupiers. By the way, presumably, in the area of the village of Krynky in the fall of 2023, the deputy of the 14th Army Corps of the Russian Armed Forces, Major General Zavadskyi, died.

It should be noted that on December 14, 2023, the day of Putin’s “direct line”, the British Ministry of Defense reports specifically on the problems of the Russian military on the left bank of Kherson, and not the Ukrainian army. They write there that the newly formed 104th Guards Airborne Division of Russia with a high probability suffered extremely heavy losses when trying to dislodge Ukrainian forces from Krynky.

Speaking about the successes of Russians on the left bank of the Kherson region, Russian propaganda is trying to create the idea that the Russian army has a great advantage there. In addition, in this way, propagandists once again exceed the achievements of the Russian military in the war in Ukraine. Previously, we analyzed the propaganda message that Ukraine is allegedly preparing for the surrender of Kherson.

Pro-Kremlin telegram channels are distributing a video allegedly from Euronews, which depicts “graffiti” with Volodymyr Zelenskyi in the image of a maniac from the film “The Shining”, in the interpretation of the creators of street art demanding money. The reports also refer to material from the publication Der Tagesspiegel, which allegedly cites this graffiti as evidence of the growth of anti-Ukrainian sentiment. It is not true.

The VoxCheck analysts investigated this case and found out that Euronews did not publish the video on its social media pages. This means that the probable plot is compiled. In addition, there is no material about the caricature and the growth of so-called “anti-Ukrainian sentiments” in Germany on the Der Tagesspiegel website or on the publication’s social networks.

We have repeatedly documented hoaxes involving fake graffiti or covers on foreign magazines, newspaper columns or advertisements. Thus, propagandists seek to show that their rhetoric (for example, that Zelenskyi is hated by the whole world) is also repeated in the West. So it may seem to readers that the public is really dissatisfied with Ukraine. And especially when the authors use elements of popular culture, hinting that people are laughing at the situation in Ukraine, and that the Ukrainian agenda for Europe is a reason to laugh.

Russian telegram channels are distributing a video recording of an unknown woman who, on condition of anonymity, says that the Ukrainian military seems to be robbing residential buildings and apartments in Kherson because they will “surrender the city”. They justify their actions by the fact that they do not want to leave Russia.

The very fact of the appearance of information with reference to an anonymous authority already indicates its dubiousness. The Russians are conducting IPSO as if they are actively advancing on all sectors of the front and are preparing to occupy Kherson. In fact, the reality is different - the Ukrainian Armed Forces are conducting an operation on the left bank of the Kherson region, and this gives grounds to assert that the information about the surrender of Kherson is an invention of Russian propaganda.

With disinformation about the alleged capture of Kherson, the Russians are trying to cover up their failures on the battlefield and discredit the Ukrainian army. Moreover, the Russians launched similar messages before the Kharkiv region was liberated in September 2022.

• Read also: The Ukrainian Armed Forces allegedly deliberately shelled the center of Kherson

This information is disseminated by pro-Kremlin resources. In this “news”, propaganda  refers to the British broadcasting corporation BBC, which published the corresponding video. The information itself is distributed in several versions. The first piece of propaganda allegedly attaches a BBC video with text about accusations against the head of the Servant of the People faction. It says that the case is likely to be investigated by the International Criminal Court, and information about this was received by the BBC, as well as the research group Bellingcat. In the second version, only a screenshot from the same video is attached. All this is done in the corporate style of the British broadcaster. However, this is fake.

Experts on the StopFake project studied this case. They managed to find out that the information was not true. Journalists from Newtral and Checkyourfact, who checked the video, also came to the conclusion that it was fake.

Firstly, the video in question says that one of those who received information about the investigation is BBC journalist Shayan Sardarizadeh. It should be noted that such a journalist really exists, and he is engaged in fact-checking. However, on his page on the social network X, the journalist himself said that the video being distributed was fake.

Secondly, the incorrect spelling of David Arakhamia’s last name in the video indicates that the material is likely fake. In the accompanying text he writes “Arahmia”, but in English the surname of the head of the Servant of the People faction should be written as Arakhamia. In addition, a search on the official BBC website for the surname Arahmia does not yield any results.

Thirdly, on the same official website of the BBC, on the social networks X and Facebook, on YouTube there is no video publication published by propaganda. Propagandists once again used the corporate style of the world's leading media, in this case the BBC, to create yet another fake story about Ukraine.

This is not the first time that Russian propaganda has used the corporate design style of reputable foreign media to publish its fake news. Previously, we refuted information that the German media Deutsche Welle allegedly distributed a video about an anti-Ukrainian flash mob that took place in Poland.

Users of social networks that spread pro-Russian rhetoric are spreading information that, due to a shortage of electricity, Ukrainian television is allegedly calling on “all unmarried women to move to bachelorhood”. A video is also being circulated online of a news program presenter saying: “The message continues to be important. Due to the heat and electricity conservation regime, all unmarried women are asked to move into bachelors. Please do not ignore this question and be sure to pass it on to your loved ones. Studio”.

In fact, the message being circulated online is not true, and the video itself has been edited. Using a reverse image search on Bing, StopFake specialists were able to establish that a news release from the First City TV Channel.Kryvyi Rih was used to create this fake video. On the screen is Natalia Boldunska, who regularly hosts a news program. The fact-checkers looked through all the news releases with Natalia’s participation, but they were never able to find such a “story”. This video was probably created using a neural network.

The fact that the video was deliberately edited for propaganda purposes is also indicated by the illogicality of the “presenter’s” language. At the end of the video, it can be heard saying: “Studio”. Typically, such an appeal can be heard from correspondents during live broadcasts, and not from the host who is most in the studio of the new program. The very advice to unmarried women to move into bachelors during a power outage is a joke and has been spreading online since at least October 2022.

This video was first published on his Telegram channel by the famous pro-Kremlin propagandist Simeon Boikov, better known by his online nickname Aussie Cossack. StopFake has repeatedly drawn attention to Boikov’s propaganda activities: he regularly distributes false content about Ukraine. Also, Australian media previously reported that Boikov was hiding in the Russian consulate after a Sydney court issued a warrant for his arrest in December 2022. A man is accused of attacking a pro-Ukrainian protester.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists want to show that the Ukrainian authorities and Ukrainians do not want to solve problems at all, but are running away from them. In particular, this also applies to power outages. However, in reality it is Russia that should be in them, since it is destroying Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.

Users of social networks broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric began to spread fake information that one of the Ukrainian companies specializing in the production of video content is now showing a video where a neural network “revitalizes” dead soldiers so that they express the opinion: “It was not worth it” (reflection of Russian aggression, which led to the death of soldiers at the hands of the Russian occupiers. - ed.). As “proof”, users attach a short video, which, according to them, was recorded from the group’s official YouTube page.

The StopFake project verified whether this video is actually related to the mentioned company. It turned out that the disseminated information was not true. Firstly, the video shows that the broadcast, as noted, took place on the Film.ua Group YouTube channel. The Ukrainian group of companies actually has its own channel on this platform, but the original channel has an authenticity icon next to its name, while the fake one does not. Secondly, there are no videos on the channel distributed by Russian propaganda. StopFake specialists reviewed published videos and live broadcasts over the past few months and did not find anything similar. Thirdly, StopFake turned to Film.ua Group for a comment: did they really broadcast the video that was being distributed on social networks. The group's PR manager Kateryna Zymina said that they did not do this.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists want to discredit the Armed Forces of Ukraine and create a false impression that everything is tragic at the front. Like, it’s not worth fighting, so it is necessary to agree to Russia’s terms. Detector Media wrote about a number of other inventions by Russians against the Ukrainian military.

Users of social networks broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric are distributing a video allegedly from the American media company Bloomberg that the Ukrainian authorities tried to sell the Crimean collection of “Scythian gold”, recently received from the Netherlands, at an online auction at Sotheby’s. They say they tried to block the auction, but this does not mean that valuables worth $20 million will not be sold elsewhere. However, this information is not true.

The specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. There is no specified material on the official website and social networks of Bloomberg. Despite the use of the media company’s logo by propagandists, the discrepancy between the video’s design (font and caption design) and the official version indicates that it is a fake. It should also be noted that Bloomberg publishes most of its videos without a logo. Those videos that did have the logo were first broadcast on Bloomberg TV, after which some of them were published on the agency’s social networks. In addition, Bloomberg journalists, using publicly available media content in their videos, always indicate the original source, which is not the case in the video about the sale of Scythian gold distributed online. It is a compilation of publicly available photos and videos. In particular, to create this video, propagandists used several videos from auctions published by Sotheby's, as well as an excerpt from an interview with Ukrainian politician Hennadii Korban.

The assertion that Ukraine allegedly tried to sell the exhibits through Sotheby's auction is meaningless. The fact is that the gold artifacts from Crimea, known as Scythian gold, returned to Ukraine from the Netherlands, belong to the Museum Fund of Ukraine and are under state protection. Exhibition “Crimea. Golden Island in the Black Sea”, which was exhibited on the eve of the annexation of Crimea at the Allard Pearson Museum, included 584 exhibits from five Ukrainian museums (Museum of Historical Treasures of Ukraine, Central Museum of Taurida, Bakhchisarai Historical and Cultural Museum, Kernik Museum and “Chersonese Tauride”). After the Supreme Court of the Netherlands confirmed the decision to return the Crimean artifacts to Ukraine, the items were delivered to the National Museum of the History of Ukraine, where they are still stored. It is also important to note that before lots are put up for sale, they are carefully checked by Sotheby's lawyers and art experts. All these measures virtually exclude the possibility of illegal sale of “Scythian gold” returned to Ukraine.

Propagandists spread such fakes to discredit the Ukrainian authorities. Like, everything is so bad that they have to sell historical artifacts. However, this is not so; in particular, the National Museum of the History of Ukraine took responsibility for storing the collection.

Russian telegram channels are distributing a video by a TikTok user under the nickname shket057, in which soldiers of the 167th brigade of the Ukrainian Defense Forces disorganizedly retreat from their positions near Bilohorivka. They say that such actions are related to the lack of supplies of resources necessary for fighting on the battlefield. However, this is fake.

Experts at the Center for Countering Disinformation analyzed this video. They found out that the profile from which the video was distributed duplicates the real page of the user shket057, but this video is not on it. In addition, in this case, the fact that there are no 167 brigades in the Armed Forces of Ukraine is also important.

To make things more credible, propagandists create fake accounts on TikTok, where they spread their lies on behalf of the Ukrainian military. The purpose of such actions is to demoralize the population of Ukraine, sow panic among them and assure everyone of the successes of the Russian army on the battlefield. The Russians also spread information that Ukraine allegedly went on the defensive along the entire front line, however, this turned out to be a manipulation of the words of Hanna Maliar, the former Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine.

This information was recorded by specialists from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. They explained that pro-Kremlin telegram channels are disseminating information about the defeat of the Grim-2 OTRK launcher. Video evidence is added to the messages.

However, in fact, the primary source of such “news” was a satirical telegram channel, the description of which clearly states that all messages are only humorous in nature. But in fact, the video depicts the defeat of Russian equipment. On December 6, 2023, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Ihor Klymenko published a video of the defeat of the Russian operational-tactical missile system on his telegram channel. It is most likely that the authors of the satirical channel used this particular video to create the news. And then the Kremlin resources replicated this.

Still, it is impossible to say that the Russians did not destroy Ukrainian equipment on the battlefield, because this is more than possible during the war. But propagandists deliberately exaggerate the significance of “destroyed” equipment on the battlefield, hinting at the supposedly low combat capability of the Ukrainian army. And they use supposedly reliable information to support such a thesis.

The head of the Main Directorate of Missile Forces and Artillery and Unmanned Systems of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Serhii Baranov, in an interview with the military radio station Army FM, when asked whether the Grim-2 installation was at the development stage, replied that the installation was “being improved so let the Russians experience its effects on themselves”.

Read here on how Russian propaganda devalues the weapons that serve Ukraine.

Propaganda resources are disseminating information that supposedly Ukrainian refugees in Dresden (Germany) are being given canned cockroaches as humanitarian aid. As proof of their assertion, the Russians provide a video with such canned food in the hands of a “Ukrainian refugee”. However, this is a fake.

Journalists from the StopFake project drew attention to this case. They found that there was no information confirming the fact that Ukrainian refugees in Dresden or any other city received such canned food as humanitarian aid. Moreover, canned goods with the name like in the video are not available for sale in German or Austrian online stores at all. Such canned food can indeed be bought on large marketplaces, but not as a food product, but only as an “entertaining gift for Halloween”. Considering this, it can be argued that the video distributed by the network is fake.

Previously, some Kremlin-controlled media have already used the topic of eating insects as food in some Western countries for their own propaganda purposes, building a narrative about the decline of the West and the harm of anti-Russian sanctions. Detector Media denied the information that the alleged invasion of bedbugs in France is a consequence of anti-Russian sanctions.

This information is disseminated by pro-Russian resources. They say that a referendum on this matter will take place on January 15, 2024 in Lviv and the region. According to the video that propagandists add, the survey was conducted by CBOS, the Polish Center for Public Opinion Research. Considering the comments, some residents of the Lviv region are allegedly even happy about the opportunity to live in Poland. It's fake.

The experts from the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council examined this information. They found out that the CBOS website does not contain any materials about such a sociological survey. The latest study on Ukraine is dated November 27, 2023, and its topic is the war in Ukraine, and not the so-called referendum. In the end, no referendum on the annexation of the Lviv region to Poland can be held, since this is contrary to the legislation of Ukraine and poses a threat to the territorial integrity of the state and its security.

With the help of such disinformation materials, the Russians are trying to fuel their narrative that Poland is allegedly planning to occupy the Ukrainian event. One can also trace the attempts of propagandists to create an image of an enemy for Ukrainians from Poland. Previously, we refuted the information that during the 1.5 year war against Russia in Ukraine, more than 10,000 Poles allegedly died.

Social media users spreading pro-Russian rhetoric are circulating a video showing a huge line of cars to enter the Ukrainian ski resort of Bukovel. They add comments where they are surprised why the territorial recruitment centers - a military command body that ensures the organization of military service and mobilization - does not check car drivers. However, this is manipulation.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found that the video in question actually dates back to 2021, before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine had yet occurred. So, the video has nothing to do with the realities of martial law, which was declared in Ukraine on February 24, 2022: the territorial recruitment center representatives could not be among the queue of cars to enter Bukovel. The mentioned video first appeared on the TikTok social network. It was published by user Oksana Panchak (nickname – @zozuliaksenya). Her post indicates that the video was filmed in 2021. This video was used by the page “Website of Yaremche and Vorokhta - the main news and events of the Carpathian region” on Meta’s social networks to advertise the start of the winter season in Bukovel. The corresponding publication appeared on the page on December 2. However, the post states that the video was taken from the archive for illustration purposes. Further in the comments, the authors of the publication once again emphasize that the video recording was made in 2021.

Such a massive dissemination of a video from Bukovel with almost identical captions regarding the territorial recruitment centers and the conditional division of society into those at war and “for whom there is no war”, probably indicates a new disinformation campaign to split Ukrainian society. Recently, Russia has intensified information pressure and the dissemination of false information, which could undermine the trust of Ukrainians in the political and military leadership of the country, as well as divide society, including on the issue of mobilization. Detector Media  has repeatedly refuted other stories on this topic.

An eight-second video is being circulated on social networks in the Russian segment, allegedly showing a prayer for Ukraine’s accession to NATO and the EU being read in a Ukrainian church. “God, don’t send us to Heaven, but send us to NATO and the EU”, is allegedly written in the text of such a “prayer”. Anonymous telegram channels began to claim that the OCU was engaged in blasphemy and discrediting Orthodox believers. It is not true.

The StopFake analysts studied the case and found out that the video is not real, because there is no information that is located in Ukrainian churches about reading such a “prayer”. Moreover, information is disseminated only in pro-Kremlin media or anonymous telegram channels.

As experts explained, according to church rules, the texts of new prayers are approved by the Holy Synod of the OCU - this is the governing body of the OCU. All their decisions, including the texts of newly approved prayers, are published on the official website of the OCU. However, StopFake analysts did not find among the decisions of the Synod the statement of “prayer for Ukraine’s accession to NATO and the EU”.

They also contacted the press service of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The department told them that this was an obvious fake, and they did not approve such a prayer.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks claim that Ukrainian porn actress Maia Konovalenko (Nancy Ace) has allegedly announced her candidacy for the presidency of Ukraine, explaining that the Ukrainian economy “stands solely on porn stars”. The fake is accompanied by a video where Konovalenko allegedly makes retaliatory statements during an interview for the British tabloid The Sun. However, this is fake.

StopFake specialists drew attention to it. They found out that Konovalenko did not make any such statements, and the video was fake. It is indicated that it was created from a stream on the YouTube channel Rocco's World, where Konovalenko talked with porn actor Rocco Siffredi in April 2020. No statements by Konovalenko about his intentions to go into politics were found on the official resources of The Sun and other English-language publications. Also, the fakeness of the video is indicated by the fact that the actress’s lips move differently in the original and fake videos, which, according to StopFake, indicates the use of neural networks to create it.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists mock Ukrainian politics and reinforce the unfair treatment of Ukrainian women within the framework of the stereotype of “Ukrainian prostitutes”. Detector Media has already explained how Russian propaganda is trying to humiliate Ukrainian women.

Propagandists broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks are distributing a video allegedly filmed recently at protests against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi in Zhytomyr. Like, slogans such as “Get out!” were heard on them. But in fact this is fake.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that the video being distributed was recorded during a protest on Independence Square in Kyiv on October 1, 2019. In particular, analysts point out that in the video one can recognize the architectural ensemble of Maidan Nezalezhnosti. In addition, StopFake specialists found in the Russian search engine Yandex a video from the then Kyiv protest, where protesters can be seen chanting “Get out!” and holding the same posters and flags as in the video distributed by propagandists. This all confirms that both recordings show the same Kyiv action from four years ago.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists want to create internal tension and conflicts in Ukraine. Detector Media also noted the intensification of this narrative and refuted a number of fabrications of Russian propaganda aimed at personally discrediting Volodymyr Zelenskyi.

Russian propagandists claim that in Ukraine they have begun distributing advertisements for homosexuals calling for them to join the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The first half of the 10-second video shows heterosexual and homosexual couples kissing, while the second half features footage of military personnel. The footage is accompanied by a male voice saying: “It doesn’t matter at all whether you love women or men. It is important that you love Ukraine. Join the Armed Forces of Ukraine”. However, this is fake.

This case was analyzed by the fact-checkers for the StopFake project. They found out that the video is fake for a number of reasons. Firstly, the kissing footage was taken from a report published on the iD YouTube channel back in 2020. The second part of the video already uses footage from the social advertising of the Ukrainian Ground Forces “The Ballad of the Infantry”, published back in 2016. Secondly, the use of the word “love” in relation to Ukraine in the video indicates that its authors probably have poor command of the Ukrainian language. The word “love” describes specifically romantic love, while Ukraine or, for example, animals or colors can be “loved”.

With this fake video, Russian propaganda nourishes the narrative that supposedly Ukrainian troops will suffer huge losses on the battlefield and, as a result, they are running out of people. Therefore, “even” homosexuals are now being mobilized into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. However, attempts to discredit the Ukrainian army are in vain, since the Armed Forces contain representatives of different gender and sexual identities who defend Ukraine along with other military personnel. Previously, we analyzed disinformation that supposedly Ukrainians are dying for the right to be homosexual.

Social media users spreading pro-Russian rhetoric are spreading an alleged news story about telephone scammers from Ukraine who, according to the article, are committing crimes against Israelis. In the news story they claim that since October 8, Israelis have been receiving calls from “banks” informing them that the bank office has allegedly been the victim of a Hamas attack, and they need to immediately provide card details to transfer money to a safe place. It is alleged that the police investigation showed that the money was transferred to Ukraine, where the criminals were operating. However, this is fake.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They claim that this information is false. The video distributed online imitates the design of videos from the Israeli publication The Times of Israel, but in fact no such material exists on the official website or social networks of this media company. Also, the video's inauthenticity is indicated by a difference in design, as The Times of Israel uses a different font and from time to time publishes a video without its logo or any inscriptions. The story itself is completely fictitious because none of the reputable publications, including local media in Israel, reported such cases of fraud on the part of Ukrainians.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists want to discredit Ukrainians abroad. They say they interfere in the affairs of others and make money from the misfortune of others. However, Detector Media also refuted other fakes and manipulations on the latest events in the Middle East.

Media and social media users spreading pro-Russian rhetoric claim that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi ordered the Ukrainian military to “immediately leave” the city of Avdiivka in the Donetsk region, supported by a corresponding video. However, this video is fake.

Analysts from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that the video used old footage and a voice similar to the voice of the Ukrainian president. In addition, it is distributed only by users of social networks, pro-Russian sites and Telegram channels. Not a single authoritative Ukrainian or English-language media reported such a “loud” order from the Ukrainian president. In addition, this video distributed by Russian propaganda is not on Zelensky’s official pages on social networks, where he usually publishes his addresses.

Secondly, with a detailed review of the fake “video message”, it is noticeable that Zelenskyi’s facial expressions do not correspond to his language. StopFake specialists discovered an identical video with Zelenskyi dated October 31, 2023. However, in the original video, the president does not issue any “orders” regarding Avdiivka, but talks about the situation in the Black Sea, the work of the “grain corridor”, international support, and so on. To create a fake, audio with an artificially created voice of Zelenskyi about the order to leave Avdiivka was simply superimposed on this video, using the corporate style of the 1+1 TV channel for greater credibility.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists want to cause panic among Ukrainians and personal distrust of Zelenskyi. Like, Ukraine is losing. However, Detector Media also refuted other fakes and manipulations on a similar topic, where propagandists manipulated the President of Ukraine.

Pro-Russian resources began distributing a video in which supposedly Ukrainian military personnel, introducing themselves as fighters of the 3rd battalion of the 110th separate mechanized brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, complain to the President of Ukraine and the Commander-in-Chief about poor command and heavy losses in Avdiivka.

Fact-checkers of the StopFake project processed this case. They found out that the 110th separate mechanized brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces responded to this video and refuted it. On the brigade’s official Facebook page they write that the video is not of their Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers, but of occupiers dressed in Ukrainian uniforms. In addition, suspicion was also aroused by the fact that the “military man” who complained on behalf of the battalion did not name his company, unit, position, surname or call sign in this “appeal”, although the video was recorded with open faces.

Propagandists are trying to demoralize Ukrainian society by spreading fake news like this video. They do this cynically, insidiously and resort to peculiar methods. Previously, we refuted the information that allegedly Hamas representatives recorded a video in which they thanked Zelenskyi for providing the weapons.

This thesis was spread on social networks in the Russian segment. Reports say that female doctors are leaving Ukraine en masse for the temporarily occupied territories. In support of this thesis, a video is cited: a recording of a telephone conversation with a so-called doctor, a woman, from the Lviv region, who allegedly wants to go to temporarily occupied Mariupol and is looking for an apartment to live in. The authors argued that the woman allegedly received a draft notice and therefore she wanted to leave.

Analysts from the VoxCheck project dealt with this case. They explained that female doctors and pharmacists should indeed register with the military from October 1, 2023, but registration with the military does not mean mobilization or the establishment of restrictions on traveling abroad. The Ministry of Health notes: registration is necessary only to summarize data on the existing reserve of doctors in the country. The travel of this category of women is unlimited.

Therefore, most likely, the video is staged. After all, women are not mobilized in Ukraine  although the heroine of the video, during a telephone conversation, used the argument about mobilization as one of the main reasons for her irresistible desire to “escape” from Ukraine. In addition, this video is distributed only in the Russian segment of social networks. Experts cited other points from the telephone conversation:

For example, a woman said that she was only interested in an apartment in a new building and thus hinted that Russia was rebuilding Mariupol - a city that the occupiers really destroyed to the ground. Read in our Newspeak section how Moscow actually “rebuilds”  captured and destroyed cities and villages, calling them “a piece of paradise”.

Of course, it is almost impossible to verify the authenticity of the recording of a telephone conversation, since we can only refute the facts listed during the conversation. And this information includes false facts that, most likely, the Kremlin can use for its own purposes. For example, spread panic among Ukrainian women.