Wrote: Endrit Berisha
A TikTok post claimed that current Prime Minister Albin Kurti had stated to the German newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ)" in 1998 that "those who support America and Rugova are against Kosovo."
The claim was published by the account named "mentoralbodollar" on TikTok on Thursday (July 4).
What's wrong with this publication?
The published image purports to have been the front page of a German newspaper, with an old photograph of Kurti, who allegedly said that those who support America and the then president of Kosovo, Ibrahim Rugova, are against Kosovo. “Wer die USA und Rugova unterstuzt, ist gegen Kosovo”, is the German-language headline that purports to have been published in the newspaper. But the publication turns out to be false.
Above this image is the caption “KURTI IN 1998: THOSE WHO SUPPORT AMERICA AND RUGOVA ARE AGAINST KOSOVO!!! ???? ???? ???? ????”
Link to the publication of the account named "mentoralbodollar" on Tiktok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@mentoralbodollar/photo/7387638915513027873
This claim had circulated on the eve of the 2021 general elections. At the time, the news was denied by the German newspaper's correspondent, Michael Martens, who said that this publication was never made in FAZ and that it was being made for campaign purposes only.
Martens' post on X (formerly Twitter) on January 24, 2021:
“In the wake of the elections in Kosovo, a fake news campaign is underway on various social media, involving Albin Kurti and the 'Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung'. Please note: This article has never appeared in FAZ. The quote is false.”
Even on the website dedicated to the German newspaper's archive, a search with a similar title or the name Albin Kurti does not find such a text. (See here)
The post by the account "mentoralbodollar" on TikTok, until the case was handled by Hibrid.info, has accumulated about 20 thousand views, almost 100 comments and over 250 likes. The post shows that some of the comments have taken the content for granted.
Analyze:
The account named "mentoralbodollar" claimed in a TikTok post that the current Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, had stated to the German newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ)" in 1998 that "those who support America and Rugova are against Kosovo."
After verification by hibrid.info, it turns out that the same claim was published three years ago and was denied by a FAZ correspondent. The article cannot be found on the newspaper's archive page either.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info assesses this content as "Fake News".
Reasoning:
The “Fake News” rating is given to informational content that is entirely fabricated or that contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be defined as having been created and distributed with the intent to misinform the public, i.e., to present a claim that is completely false as fact.