Prepared by: Festim Rizanaj
As a result of the findings and treatments of misinformation published last week, disinformation is what dominated the misinformation ecosphere.
Disinformation was published on information portals and social media pages on topics related to sports, politics, security and social issues. In the field of sports, it was falsely claimed that the Kosovo footballer, Albion Rrahmani, has been transferred to one of the teams in Italy's most elite league, Serie A. In terms of social issues, the incorrect claim was published that the price of a 500-gram loaf of bread in Slovenia is 0.19 euros. In the field of security, a video claimed that the Serbian gendarmerie had entered Kosovo's territory. While in politics, the false claim was published that Great Britain is also conditioning Kosovo's accession to the European Council.
The clickbait article was published on an information portal regarding a tragic event in Germany, and the title did not indicate where the event took place, and even the photograph used to present the news was taken on the premises of the University Clinical Center of Kosovo (UCCK).
Deceptive content has been published on several social media pages claiming to be healing products, related to the product called "U Caps", claiming that it is a medicine that helps restore hearing, and through the publication of a false post, a call was made for people to take a medicine to treat prostatitis.
Two pieces of unverified content have been published in the past week. An English-language online media outlet published an article claiming to have dismissed Gabriel Escobar from his position as US Deputy Assistant Secretary. Also, a video showing several people participating in a prayer was published with a caption claiming to show American students at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) converting to Islam.
The claim that prisoners in Dubrava prison are waiting up to 10 days to be cleaned was considered clickbait/disinformation. Meanwhile, the interpretation of the statement by American professor Daniel Serwer, "everyone started badly and it ended even worse for Kosovo and Serbia," was considered clickbait disinformation.
Conspiracy theories have been published in Serbian-language media, referring to statements by the Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia, which claims that Albin Kurti, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, is criminalizing the north with "legal violence against Serbs" and "a criminal intent and plan for gradual ethnic cleansing" by institutions in Kosovo.
Fake news has been published on social media, where an article claims that an Albanian doctor cures diabetes in just one day.
The manipulation of the fact was published on social media, and through a video published on the social network "TikTok" it was claimed that the Kosovo Police Special Unit reacted to the swearing-in of the new Serbian Government.
disinformation
An article has been published, the title of which claims that the Kosovo footballer, Albion Rrahmani, has been transferred to one of the teams in Italy's most elite league, Serie A. The article by an information portal, "futbolli.al", was published (May 2), by a Facebook page, under the name "Serie A Shqip". Hibrid.info has found that there is no official confirmation of Rrahmani's transfer to one of the Italian teams and that he continues to be part of Rapid Bucharest. (here)
A photograph has been published showing the food product, bread, with a label showing the price of 0.19 euros and with an inscription claiming to represent the value of this product in the Slovenian state. The claim presented by means of a photograph, which states that the price of bread weighing 500 grams in Slovenia is 0.19 euros, is not accurate. Hibrid.info has found that for the same product, in this country, something more than 1.70 euros is paid, while Kosovo is ranked among the countries with the lowest price in Europe, in terms of the value of bread on the market. (here)
A video claims that Serbian gendarmerie forces have entered Kosovo territory. The video was posted by the “Publiku” Facebook page on April 24, with the caption “Alarming – Serbian Army enters Kosovo territory”. After verification by hibrid.info, it turns out that the video is old. “Gazeta Metro” had published the video on March 20, 2020. (here)
“Great Britain also conditions Kosovo for the Council of Europe – Association is needed now” is the caption of a published image, which shows the delegation of Great Britain to the OSCE. This image was published (May 10) on the Facebook page of the information portal of the television “ntv.al” and a link to an article published by the portal in question was also attached to it. However, hibrid.info has found that in the statement of the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Neil Holland, from which the attached article originates, no conditionality of Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe (CoE) is mentioned, with the establishment of the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities. (here)
Clickbait
“Four 13-year-old children fall from the gym terrace, here is their health condition” is the title of an article published in the digital space. The article was published (May 6) on the “ntv.al” television portal and on the Facebook page of this medium. However, the title did not indicate where the event took place, and even the photograph used to present the news was taken in the premises of the University Clinical Center of Kosovo (QKUK). (here)
Lies
A product called “U Caps” has been put up for sale online, claiming to be a medicine that helps restore hearing. This product is promoted by two dubious websites with content in Albanian, “al3.diefiltertea.info” and “teaequisphere.pro”. Within the promotional content is a photograph of a man, who claims to be a doctor named “Nikola Gjorgiev”, who presents himself as an otolaryngologist. (here)
A Facebook post claimed to be humanitarian aid for a prostate treatment drug. The account named “Medical Office – EU” published a post on May 7 in which it called for people to take a drug to treat prostate. The call was made by saying that this is humanitarian aid. “Hurry up and get it – Attention! Humanitarian aid is intended for all residents of Kosovo! Prostate treatment drug for only 3 days! Hurry up and get it,” the post reads, without giving details. After verification by hibrid.info, it turns out that the post uses old photos from a foreign country; clicking on the article leads to a suspicious page; and that the drug in question, “Prostafix,” is not on the list of products with marketing authorization in the Republic of Kosovo. (here)
Unverified content
“Frontliner.uk” has published an article claiming the dismissal of Gabriel Escobar from the position of US Deputy Assistant Secretary. The published article turns out to have a false claim (Escobar’s dismissal) which seeks to be argued with unverified content (Escobar’s connection to a law firm). Therefore, the DASh response also rejects the form of the decision for Ambassador Escobar, clarifying that it is not a dismissal but a regular procedure for the rotation of diplomatic engagement; and for the reason for this move, it is not related to any case of conflict of interest, as claimed in the article. (here)
A video showing several people participating in a prayer has been published with a caption claiming to show American students at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) converting to Islam. The video was published on May 3 by a Facebook page called “Mesazhi.com”. However, hibrid.info has found that based on the treatment of the same content by the English-language fact-checker, “Snopes.com” (here), the video does not show any evidence suggesting that the people shown have converted to Islam. (here)
Clickbait/misinformation
An article titled, “Scandal in Dubrava: Prisoners are waiting up to 10 days to be cleaned” has been published. The claim that prisoners in Dubrava prison are waiting up to 10 days to be cleaned is not based on facts, but on statements. The news was published yesterday (May 7), on the information portal “kosova-sot.info”, but hibrid.info has found that the published information comes from a statement by the deputy of the Assembly of Kosovo, Driton Selmanaj, which is not specified in the title of this article. (here)
Misinformation/Clickbait
“They all started badly and ended even worse Daniel Serwer for Kosovo and Serbia” is the caption of a published image showing the photo of American professor Daniel Serwer. This image was posted (May 11) on Facebook on the page of the information portal of the television “ntv.al”, to which a link to an article was also attached. After checking the facts, hibrid.info has confirmed that this caption is incorrect and does not correspond to the content. In the content of the article, it becomes clear that the American professor in his opinion, the sentence “they started badly and ended badly” did not say about Kosovo and Serbia, but about the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the State Department, Gabriel Escobar and the EU Special Representative, Miroslav Lajčak. (here)
Conspiracy theory
The Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia (OKS) has continued with the narrative that Kosovo Serbs are facing ongoing violence in Kosovo. On May 7, the director of the OKS, Petar Petkovic, responded to Prime Minister Albin Kurti, after the latter described Serbia’s narrative regarding the security of Kosovo Serbs as propaganda. Even in the latest claim, most of Petkovic’s response is not based on facts. He says that Kurti is criminalizing the northern part of the country, without supporting this claim with any facts. He also says that Kurti is trying to find justifications for “physical and legal violence” against Serbs, but he does not base this claim on any facts either. Petkovic also says that the “deterioration of the situation in the north” is “a direct consequence of the occupation carried out by Kurti.” This claim is not based on any facts either, while he continues to claim without facts that "his phalanges terrorize, shoot at Serbs, and even beat our children!" (here)
The Office for Kosovo in the Government of Serbia, without relying on facts, has linked the arrest of a Serbian citizen in Jarinje, with “legal violence against Serbs” and “criminal intent and plan for gradual ethnic cleansing” by institutions in Kosovo. This office has said that Serbs are being arrested without any basis. Kosovo Police in a press release said that the person was arrested on suspicion of several offenses related to the violent protests of May 29 in Zvecan. (here)
Fake news
An article claims that an Albanian doctor cures diabetes in just one day. This article was published on May 9 on Facebook by a page called “Atdheu Lajm”. The content of the article claims that Kosovar surgeon Arbër Morina has stated that he cures diabetes in one day. Hibrid.info, after researching Morina’s personal Facebook account, has found that he has denied this article, calling it false and that it was not written by him. (here)
Manipulation of facts
Through a video published on the social network “TikTok” it is claimed that the Special Unit of the Kosovo Police has reacted to the oath of the new Government of Serbia. The account with the name “shqiponja.ksv” published a video on May 6 with the caption: “The Serbian Government swears to keep Kosovo under Serbia, the Special Unit reacts…” After verification by hibrid.info, it turns out that two videos have been linked, which had nothing to do with each other. (here)