Europe

Does a video clearly show French President Macron hiding a bag of white powder cocaine as reporters enter a train car where he is meeting with German Chancellor Merz and UK Prime Minister Starmer? No, that's not true: The low-resolution video used to make the claim that the white material in front of Macron is cocaine is too blurry to…

Did Robert Francis Prevost moonlight as "Bobby Prev", a "celebrated jazz trombonist" in Chicago who "headlined several jazz festivals in the '70s and '80s"? No, that's not true: The archives of the Chicago Tribune, which has long provided detailed coverage of jazz, contain no celebrations or even mentions of such a musician. Similarly, a search of the GoogleNews index of…

Does a viral image prove that the newly elected U.S.-born Pope Leo XIV is a "registered Republican" from Will County, Illinois? That omits some context: According to the Will County Clerk's Office file, the new Pope did vote in Republican primaries in the past, but that doesn't make him a "registered Republican" because Illinois does not require eligible voters to…

Cardinal Robert Prevost, a Chicago native, was chosen as successor to Pope Francis. Prevost, who becomes the first American to lead the Roman Catholic Church, has chosen the name Leo XIV. (Source: Lead Stories' screenshot of Vatican TV) Prevost's earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Villanova University in 1977, and a Master of Divinity from Catholic Theological Union…

Was there a WhatsApp leak in France that revealed the imminent arrest on May 6, 2025 of right-wing politicians Marine Le Pen, Marion Maréchal, Sarah Knafo and Florian Philippot as reported in a video from the "FP+" channel ? No, that's not true: That channel is part of the website of French magazine Front Populaire, which did not publish any…

Does a viral post of a man in a Nazi SS uniform document the young life of financier George Soros? No, that's not true: It's not Soros. Further, the meme and other similar posts about Soros provide no documentary evidence for the extraordinary claim that Soros, who was 14 at the time of the Nazi occupation of his home country,…

Did Indians or Pakistanis set fire to a church in Wales in April 2025? No, that's not true: In response to widely-shared social media rumors, South Wales Police told Lead Stories there was "no link to India or Pakistan at all" in their investigation into a fire at the Bethany English Calvinistic Methodist Chapel in Port Talbot. Two local teenage…

Did a widely-viewed video authentically show Pope Francis in a wheelchair with three hands? No, that's not true: that clip was fake and a digital fabrication. It recreated a real moment, shown in authentic video, in which Francis emerged on to the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica to give the Easter Sunday "urbi et orbi" blessing, one day before his…

Does a viral video authentically show a French teacher reacting to students bullying each other by kicking and punching them using Chinese martial arts? No, that's not true: The video was originally put out by Campus Univers Cascades, a French training center for stunt techniques. The video features trained professionals and was recorded and originally shared on social media for…

Did Pope Francis' dog "refuse to leave his grave"? No, that's not true: None of the variations of the internet rumor support that by links to credible news reports or authentic footage or photographs from the papal funeral, which was covered in detail by multiple journalistic organizations. There is no evidence that the late pontiff kept any pets during his…

Did The Sun publish a video claiming Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle sold Princess Diana's iconic revenge dress to Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska for $2.9 million in April 2025? No, that's not true: There is no such story or video on The Sun's website or social media. The quote from "Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams" in the video was cut…

Does a video of a Black man being escorted from St. Peter's Basilica show that Africans were banned from viewing the body of Pope Francis? No, that's not true: The man seen in the video was ejected after he jumped the long line of people waiting to enter, bypassed Vatican security, and began shouting. Lead Stories reporters at St. Peter's…

Does an inverted cross in a viral video from St. Peter's Basilica offer evidence of satanism in the Vatican? No, that's not true: The upside-down cross, also known as the Petrine cross, has a distinctive theological meaning in the religious context. It is associated with St. Peter whose wish was, as the Vatican website describes it, to be crucified head-down…

Did Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene post that "evil is being defeated", shortly after the death of Pope Francis was announced on April 21, 2025? Yes, that's true: Screenshots of the X post were shared widely online, especially among those critical of what they interpreted as a celebratory reference to the death of the pontiff. The Georgia Congresswoman also wrote that…

By Raffaella Menichini, Lead Stories Deputy International Teams Manager (Rome) and Lead Stories staff A nine-day mourning period has begun with the death of Pope Francis, who died on Monday, April 21, 2025, at the age of 88, according to a statement released by the Holy See Press Office. The cause of death, declared by the Vatican's Directorate of Health…

Did Statista publish a graph detailing the nationalities of the people described as "mercenaries" who fought for Ukraine and were killed in the Kursk region of Russia? No, that's not true: The data on the Statista website doesn't show the graph shared on social media. Unlike authentic charts published by that company, the graph omitted the source of the figures…

At the press briefing during his visit to Pituffik Space Base in Greenland, was the casually-dressed Vice President JD Vance asked "Why don't you wear a suit?", as a TikTok video makes it sound? No, that's not true: The TikTok clip combines authentic video from Vance's March 28, 2025 Greenland visit with authentic audio from a February 28, 2025 White…

Did the BBC report that Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska tried to escape to Europe and was put under the guard of the national Security Service when the attempt failed? No, that's not true: In a statement to Lead Stories, a BBC spokesperson refuted the claim, referring to the viral video as "fabricated content that impersonates the BBC." No credible…

Did United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer post on social media about the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, on March 30, 2025, but fail to post about Mother's Day on the same day? No, that's not true: Starmer posted about Mother's Day on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. He also wished Muslims a blessed Eid-al-Fitr, the festival which marks the end…

Did actor Richard Gere leave the United States after Donald Trump became president and did he vow "never to return"? No, that's not true: The actor announced the move as far back as April 2024 when Joe Biden was still President and the national conventions still had to happen. The stated reason for the move was that Gere's wife is…