Prepared by: Festim Rizanaj
Over the past week, according to monitoring of media and social networks, disinformation has dominated as the main form of information disorder.
Over the past week, disinformation has been spread mainly on social networks such as Facebook, TikTok, the “X” platform (formerly Twitter), as well as on online portals, covering various sensitive political and international topics. On May 25, a video was published on Facebook falsely claiming that China was sending humanitarian aid to Gaza, although there is no evidence for this, due to the Israeli blockade. On May 26, a video of a fight in Italy was shared on the “X” platform, accompanied by false claims about the involvement of Albanian and Arab citizens, while the facts showed that all those involved were Moroccans. On May 27, a Facebook page published manipulated content claiming that the Prosecutor’s Office had withdrawn from the investigation against Minister Faton Peci, although the case remains under investigation. Also, on May 27, a video was published on TikTok claiming that German tanks were being sent to Kosovo for the KSF, but it was confirmed that the footage was of a Turkish tank, unrelated to Kosovo. Finally, on May 29, the portal “Ntv.al” misinterpreted a statement by the head of the EU Office in Kosovo, Aivo Orav, claiming that he had said that Kosovo’s rapprochement with the EU is being hindered due to Serbia’s behavior, which is not true according to his official statement.
In addition to disinformation, over the past week, the use of clickbait headlines, which present news in an exaggerated or inaccurate manner to encourage clicks, has also been observed in online media and social networks. On May 25, the portal “zyrtare.net” published an article with the title “Tragedy in the capital / 4 people killed, 41-year-old arrested”, which was also shared on several Facebook pages. The title is general and does not specify that the event took place in London, leaving readers to think that it is about another capital, such as Pristina or Tirana. Only after opening the article does the location become clear. While on May 29, the portal “BotaeLajmeve.info” published an article with the title “Conditions for the conditional release of Thaçi and others have been met”, presenting as fact a statement made by the defense attorney, without clarifying this in the title.
In the past week, cases of fake news have also been identified, which were mainly distributed on social networks such as TikTok and Facebook, claiming events or statements that are not supported by any official or credible source. On May 25, on TikTok, an account named “army_fskkosovo” published content claiming that Albania will donate 40 SHOTA-type military vehicles to Kosovo. After verification, it was found that there is no credible source confirming this claim. Also, on Facebook, an account named “Lajme Nga Bota” published a photo showing Kosovo’s president, Vjosa Osmani, and former US president, Donald Trump, accompanied by a false claim that Trump had stated that Kosovo should share a percentage of Trepça’s minerals with the US in exchange for 1999 aid. After research, it turned out that there is no statement or evidence to support this claim, making it fake news.
A photo posted on social media purporting to show combat helicopters over Kosovo during the "Defender Europe 2025" exercise has been deemed unverified content. After fact-checking, it was determined that the photo was taken in Germany in 2020.
Clickbait
“Tragedy in the capital / 4 people killed, 41-year-old arrested”, is the title of an article published on Sunday (May 25) by the information portal “zyrtare.net”. This article was also found published on several Facebook pages such as “Zyrtare+”, “Skupi.tv”, “Shkupichanel.mk” and “Maska.al”. The title of this article published in Albanian is general and does not specify in which capital the event took place. Only after clicking on the link, where the full content is read, does it become clear that the event took place in London, the capital of England. (here)
“The conditions for the conditional release of Thaçi and others have been met” is the title given to a published article. This content was published (May 29) by an Albanian-language media outlet, under the name “BotaeLajmeve.info”. The claim that the conditions for the conditional release of Thaçi and others have been met is presented in the headline as a confirmed fact, although in the content of the article it stems from an opinion of the defense attorney, something that is not clearly stated in the headline. (here)
disinformation
A video has been released showing a plane dropping packages from above. The content, claiming to be about humanitarian aid that China is continuing to send to Gaza, was posted (May 25) on Facebook by a page called “Atalanta -Shqip”. For three months, Israel has blocked all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, and there is no evidence that China has broken this blockade by providing aid. (here)
A video has been published showing footage of a moment of a fight between several people with large knives (English - machetes) on a street in Bolzano, Italy. This video was published yesterday (May 26) on the “X” platform by the account named “vukfenix”, with the claim in English that the people involved in the incident are of Arab nationality (he has attached the Syrian flag) and Albanian. But what is the truth? Hibrid.info has found that all the people involved in the physical clash belong to Moroccan nationality. (here)
A photo of Faton Peci, Minister of Agriculture, is published with the caption “The Prosecution is withdrawing, Minister Faton Peci is clean as a tear”. This content was published yesterday (May 27) on Facebook by a page called “Gazeta Plisi”. The Special Prosecution announced that it has completed the interview of the acting Minister of Agriculture, Faton Peci, regarding the suspicions of renting out the factory for animal waste. The caption on this content implies that the Prosecution has withdrawn from the investigations into Minister Peci and that he has been cleared of suspicion. The Special Prosecution has announced that the case is still in the investigation phase and that the collection of information is continuing. (here)
On May 27, on the TikTok network, the account named “forca.kosovefsk” published a video showing footage of a tank in motion in different areas. The video was captioned “Tanks German for Kosove-FSK”, claiming that this German military vehicle is coming to Kosovo for the Kosovo Security Force (FSK). However, after fact-checking by the Hibrid.info platform, it was found that the claim is untrue. The tank shown in the video is a Turkish model and has no connection to any shipment or engagement for the FSK. (here)
An article claims that the head of the European Union (EU) office in Kosovo, Aivo Orav, has said that Kosovo's rapprochement with the EU cannot happen with the argument that Serbia "is acting badly with Kosovo". This article with this claim was published yesterday (May 29) by the Albanian-language information portal "Ntv.al". After verification by hibrid.info, it was confirmed that Orav did not make such a statement. However, according to his full statement and footage from the conference, Orav criticized the use of comparisons by Kosovo with neighboring countries in the process of rapprochement with the EU, and not the victimization of Kosovo in relation to Serbia. (here)
Fake news
A TikTok post claims that Albania will donate 40 SHOTA military vehicles to Kosovo. The claim was posted on Saturday (May 25) on TikTok by the account “army_fskkosovo”. After researching online, no information published in credible sources claiming that such a thing has been confirmed has been found. (here)
A photo has been published, showing Vjosa Osmani, the president of Kosovo, and Donald Trump, the president of the United States of America (USA). This image, with the claim that the American president has stated that Kosovo will have to give the USA a high percentage of Trepça minerals, in exchange for the aid given to Kosovo in 1999 by the USA and its allies, was published yesterday by a Facebook account named “Lajme Nga Bota”. Hibrid.info has found that there is no documented evidence that Donald Trump has made such a statement. (here)
Unverified content
A photo is circulating on social media showing several helicopters flying over an unspecified rural area. The claims accompanying the image claim that these are combat helicopters flying over the territory of Kosovo, as part of the multinational exercise “Defender Europe 2025”, with the participation of the Kosovo Security Force and the US military. After verifying the image through open sources, it has been confirmed that the photo was not taken in Kosovo – it was taken in Germany in 2020. (here)