Disinformation articles and fake news have dominated the misinformation ecosystem in the past week.
The disinformation was related to claims that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is threatening Serbs with expulsion from Kosovo or imprisonment; that Kurti has said that he is “ready to overthrow Vučić”; that Dafina Demaku is a “pro-Serbian journalist” and “suspected agent of Serbia’s Intelligence Agency (BIA)”.
Fake news regarding claims that 120 members of the Russian mercenary group "Wagner" have entered Mitrovica; that the Central Intelligence Agency "CIA" foresees armed conflict in Kosovo during July; that Aleksandar Vučić has shared on Twitter the tweet of journalist Berat Buzhala.
Manipulation of facts by Serbian-language media regarding statements by Muhamet Hajrullahu about the opposition protests in Belgrade, as well as a statement about developments in Kosovo by Mircea Geoană, NATO Deputy Secretary General.
Error regarding the fine of Tirana footballer Visar Bekaj and Edi Rama's statement about the power of the Serbian army.
Conspiracy theory from Russian media claiming that "the US and NATO are preparing a revolution in Serbia with the help of Kosovo Albanians."
Manipulation of facts
Serbian-language media, referring to a tweet by Hajrullahu, have raised the claim that the latter has rejoiced in the opposition protests in Belgrade, distorting his statement in this tweet, which is interpreted as having said: "We shook Vučić, the end has come". In other words, presenting Hajrullahu's post as in the first person. The facts show that the editor-in-chief of the information portal "telegrafi.com" did not declare that "we shook Vučić, the end has come" and that he could hardly wait for the opposition protests in Belgrade, but "they shook Vučić's foundation in Belgrade today, the end has come". (here)
The Serbian language media outlet “happytv.rs” has published an article regarding a statement about developments in Kosovo by Mircea Geoana, NATO Deputy Secretary General. The article is titled “VOICE OF REASON? NATO Deputy Secretary General CONDEMNS KFOR’S REACTION.” After fact-checking by hibrid.info, it was found that the title does not correspond to the content. Geoana condemned the attack on KFOR troops in northern Kosovo, and did not condemn their reaction, as the Serbian media outlet claims in the title of the article regarding this. (here)
error
The portal “indeksonline.net” has incorrectly reported that the Albanian Football Association (AFHA) has fined Tirana footballer Visar Bekaj 100 thousand euros on charges of inciting hatred and acts of violence after the match between Tirana and Bylis. The AFHA’s announcement states that Bekaj has been fined 100 thousand lek. Converted into Euro currency, the footballer must pay around 900 euros, to be exact 905 euros. (here)
An article has been published with a title claiming that “Edi Rama has assessed the power of the Serbian army against that of Kosovo as equal to zero”. After research, hibrid.info has confirmed that the Albanian prime minister has stated that the power of the Serbian army on the borders of Kosovo is equal to zero. (here)
disinformation
The TikTok account “@QEVERIA KURTI 2” has published content with claims made in the descriptions that the editor-in-chief of the online information portal “Periskopi.com”, Dafina Demaku, is a “pro-Serbian journalist” and “suspected agent of the Serbian Intelligence Agency (BIA)”. The claim made that the editor-in-chief of the information portal “Periskopi”, Dafina Demaku, “is suspected of being an agent of the Serbian BIA is unfounded. The TikTok account does not provide any facts or sources regarding the claim made. (here)
The information portal “Top-channel.tv” has published an article claiming that the President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani is meeting with her Serbian counterpart, Aleksandar Vučić. In addition to this claim from the portal “Top-channel.tv”, another incorrect claim was raised in this article that Prime Minister Kurti has been excluded from the talks, being replaced by President Osmani. Despite the fact that it has been warned that the President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani, will not meet with the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, they nevertheless held a brief meeting. (here)
The Serbian language media outlet “Informer.rs” has published an article claiming that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is threatening Serbs with expulsion from Kosovo or imprisonment. The Serbian daily, referring to Kurti’s statements at the Globsec conference held in Bratislava, has raised the claim that the latter has threatened Kosovo Serbs with expulsion from the country or imprisonment, manipulating its content. The facts show that Kurti did not state at Globsec that Serbs should leave Kosovo or those who remain as prisoners, but referred, as he put it, to organized gangs in the north. (here)
In an article published in the Serbian-language media outlet that holds the domain “Pink.rs”, it is alleged that the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has said that he is “ready to overthrow Vučić”. This claim was made through the title – “Kurti said: I am ready to help overthrow Vučić!”. After checking and verifying the facts presented in the “Pink.rs” article, it is understood that the title given is completely untrue. So, Kurti did not say that he is “ready to help overthrow Vučić”. In fact, Kurti, in his speech to the Kosovo Assembly, had said that “We are ready to help in the democratization of Serbia, but not to pay the price for it”, while the author of the article has given the title a comment and interpretation of Kurti’s statement, distorting it. (here)
Conspiracy theory
The pro-government media outlet in Russia, Russia Today, has published an article by the Russian state agency “Ria Novosti” in the title of which it is claimed that “the US and NATO are preparing a revolution in Serbia with the help of Kosovo Albanians”. Although the title is constructed in a question form, with a question mark at the end, it is not clarified that this is only the opinion of a Russian researcher and not any credible study. The entire claim is therefore built solely on the opinion of Russian researcher Aleksandar Bartos, a member of the Russian Academy of Military Sciences, which is based only on recent developments, but not on any concrete facts. (here)
Fake news
Several banners in Albanian have been posted on social media calling for protests in southern Mitrovica. Although the banners are different in design and content, they have the same message. These posts were made mainly on TikTok and a smaller part of them on Facebook. Hibrid.info has addressed the authenticity of these contents and has understood that they come from suspicious accounts and pages. Regarding this call, the Kosovo Police, as well as the Minister of Interior, Xhelal Sveçla, have reacted, calling on citizens not to respond to this call, as it is considered suspicious. (here)
In a photo published on social media, it is claimed that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić shared on Twitter the tweet of journalist Berat Buzhala, director of the media outlet "Nacionale.com". But this claim has been dismissed as a photo-montage. The post was actually shared by former ambassador Richard Grenell and not Vučić. (here)
The TikTok account “kiyameti2024” has published a short video (15 seconds) claiming that 120 members of the Russian mercenary group “Wagner” have entered Mitrovica, alluding to northern Kosovo. This video also includes a photo showing 4 soldiers. After fact-checking conducted through “InVID”, it was confirmed that the soldiers depicted in this image are Ukrainians, and the photo is old. (here)
A video material was published on TikTok by the account named "kiyameti2024" on June 1, in which it is claimed that the Central Intelligence Agency "CIA" foresees an armed conflict in Kosovo during July, warning of the risk of this conflict spreading to the Balkans. However, the claim presented in this video material has been confirmed by hibrid.info as unverified. (here)