Some social media users have started sharing content claiming that philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has called for the withdrawal of COVID-19 vaccines. But in fact, this claim turns out to be false, as it is based on a satirical article.
Links to these posts:
https://www.facebook.com/535647680132006/posts/1616078668755563
https://www.facebook.com/groups/221351714721186/permalink/1762380573951618
The claim originates from an article published on August 29, 2021 in “The Expose", a portal with satirical content. Even on this site (The Expose) they deny that the article is true.
The disclaimer states: “The following satire is fictional as Mr. Gates has not made such a speech and the Gates Foundation has not established any fund to compensate vaccine victims or to make effective, inexpensive COVID-19 remedies available. The entire rest of the article is factual – W. Gelles.”
The article reads: “In an often painful 19-minute televised speech, Gates said: 'We made a terrible mistake. We wanted to protect people from a dangerous virus. But it turns out the virus is much less dangerous than we thought. And the vaccine is much more dangerous than anyone could have imagined.'”
The “About Us” section of this page also explains how this portal has satirical content: “Daily Expose is run by extremely ordinary, hard-working people who are sick and tired of the widespread fear, lies, and propaganda perpetuated by the mainstream media.” (archived at arkiv.ph/pzUXS)
(full article by the team of Reuters(for fact checking)