Wrote: Fatbardh Dema
Through an image, it is claimed that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić shared journalist Berat Buzhala's post on X (formerly Twitter).
Further in the description of this image, it is claimed that in this post, Buzhala blamed the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, for the explosion that occurred on November 29 in the "Ibër-Lepenc" water canal in Zubin Potok.
it CONTENT was published today (December 3) on Facebook by the page "World News".
The truth?
After fact-checking conducted by hibrid.info, it was confirmed that the claim made by the aforementioned website is false.
Hibrid.info has found that Buzhala's post is old (May 31, 2023) and has nothing to do with the November 29 event in Zubin Potok.
Buzhala's tweet appears to contain content (in English) about his opinion on the challenges that, as he describes them, "face journalists who disagree with the government over recent developments in the north."
Excerpts from Berat Buzhala's tweet on his Twitter account on May 31, translated into Albanian:
“It is indeed a challenging situation for us Kosovo journalists who disagree with the Kurti government’s approach, especially regarding the northern part of Kosovo. We strongly believe that Kurti is making some wrong decisions, especially by turning against the entire international community that supports Kosovo, including our most important ally, the United States. We have warned people about the possible consequences of these actions.”
Hibrid.info, after research, has found that the Serbian president's account on X does not show any distribution of the journalist Buzhala's post. The last post by Vučić on this platform is the one made today, which has no connection to the developments in Kosovo. (here)
This is not the first time such a claim has been published online. Hibrid.info has previously covered a similar claim that Vučić shared Buzhala's post. (see here and here)
The authenticity of this material was also contested by the person mentioned in it. Journalist Berat Buzhala, on May 31, 2023, through a post on his Facebook account, described this claim as "fake". (See Buzhala's reaction (here)
The reaction of the Association of Kosovo Journalists (AGK) on Facebook also confirms that journalist Berat Buzhala was the target of photomontages. (see publication by AGK (here).
Analyze:
In an image published on social media, it is alleged that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić shared on Twitter a post by journalist Berat Buzhala, claiming that the latter had blamed Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti for the explosion that occurred on November 29 in the "Ibër-Lepenc" water canal in Zubin Potok.
After fact-checking by hibrid.info, it was confirmed that this claim is false. The post made by Buzhala is old (May 31, 2023), through which he had expressed his opinion on the challenges that, as he describes them, "face journalists who disagree with the government on recent developments in the north."
Also, this post was not found shared on the Serbian president's account on X.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info considers this claim to be "fake news".
Reasoning:
The “Fake News” rating is given to media reports that are entirely the product of a medium that itself contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be reliably determined to have been created and distributed with the intent to misinform the public, i.e., to present a claim that is completely false as fact.