Wrote: Fatbardh Dema
Through a post, it was claimed that the Israeli government has declared that it has declared the Albanian people as enemies of Israel.
This claim was published on August 17 on Facebook by the "Lajme Nga Bota" page, which it described as "Breaking News".
What did hibrid.info find?
After research conducted through online search engines, hibrid.info has not found any such information published in credible sources that would prove the claim made by the aforementioned site to be true.
Link to the post published on Facebook by the "World News" page:
https://archive.ph/beCEo#selection-1353.10-1353.56
On the official website of the Israeli Government, in the press release section, there is no announcement published regarding the declaration of Albanians as enemies of Israel, as the “World News” page claims. (see here)
Albania – Israel relations
After research, hibrid.info found an announcement published by the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs in Albania, published on April 15, 2024.
In this announcement, this department had explained that "Both countries have very good political-diplomatic relations which are reflected in the intensification of economic cooperation in sectors of mutual interest". (see here)
Even in the past, Israel has mentioned the friendship of the Israeli people with the Albanian people.
In 2015, the Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, traveled to Israel for a two-day visit. In the first meeting, Rama had with his counterpart, Binyamin Netanyahu.
The Israeli Prime Minister, at the time, emphasized that the friendship of his people with the Albanian people has deep roots, referring to the Holocaust, where Albanians refused to hand over Jews to the Nazis. (see here)
"We know that the Albanian people are not simply a good friend of the Israeli people today, but during the crucial period of the Holocaust they stood side by side with the persecuted Jewish people in Europe," said Netanyahu.
"Albania is the only country where the Jewish population multiplied during the Holocaust, thanks to the friendship and courage shown by the Albanian people. We never forget our friends and appreciate that humanity shown and courage in our darkest hours," the Israeli prime minister concluded, reported Panorama.al.
Analyze:
The claim that the Israeli government has declared Albanians as enemies of Israel is not true.
This was true as no statement published by the Israeli Government has been found.
Also, in a statement issued on April 15, 2024 by the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs in Albania, it is written that these two countries have very good political-diplomatic relations.
Based on its work methodology, hibrid.info assesses this content published on Facebook by the page "Lajme Nga Bota" 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.