Fake news and disinformation are the categories that have dominated during the first week of 2024 in the misinformation ecosystem in Albanian-language content.
Disinformation was published on dubious portals and social media, TikTok, related to false claims about an earthquake in Albania, about the total closure of Prishtina Mall, and that the Slovenian Prime Minister has submitted a document to the EU, in which the unification of Kosovo with Albania is requested.
Fake news was published on Facebook and TikTok, with false claims that there will be war in Kosovo and Bosnia, about an accident on a Kosovo highway, as well as footage showing moments of exercises by the Kosovo Police Special Units.
It was incorrectly reported in the media that Defense Minister Ejup Maqedonci stated that 239 million euros were invested in weapons systems this year.
Clickbait article on dubious portals with old news about apartment rental prices in Tirana.
Unverified content published on Facebook with an image purporting to be the cover of the American magazine "Time", and a portrait of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with the caption "Killer of the Year".
Clickbait/Disinformation with old news claiming that there is a shortage of workers in a sector in Switzerland.
Regarding promises, Albin Kurti joins the list of public officials who did not keep their promise regarding the completion of the Pristina - Gjilan highway.
disinformation
The dubious portal with content in Albanian “new.focuslajme.mk” published on January 1 an article titled “Earthquake in our country. Here is where the epicenter was”. After fact-checking by hibrid.info, it was confirmed that the news is old. (here)
A TikTok account has published a video showing footage of the “Prishtina Mall” shopping center. The caption of this video claims that Prishtina Mall has closed. After research and facts conducted by hibrid.info, it has been proven that this claim is not true. (here)
A TikTok account has published a video claiming that the Slovenian Prime Minister has submitted a document to the EU, in which the unification of Kosovo with Albania is requested. Hibrid.info has investigated and confirmed that the caption of the video material does not highlight the fact that the news is an unconfirmed report by the Slovenian media and that the published news is old. (here)
error
Several online media outlets have published an article claiming that the Minister of Defense, Ejup Maqedonci, stated that 239 million euros were invested in weapons systems this year. After fact-checking by hibrid.info, it was confirmed that the claim made by several media outlets is not accurate. Through a post on his Facebook account, the Minister of Defense compared the investments of the previous government with the current one in weapons systems, explaining that 239 million euros were invested during the current government's mandate. (here)
Clickbait
The dubious Albanian-language portal “xnews7.com” has published an article titled “Bad news for those living in rented accommodation in Tirana”. After fact-checking by hibrid.info, it has been confirmed that this news is old. (here)
Unverified content
Several Facebook pages have published an image purporting to be the cover of the American magazine "Time", and the portrait of the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, with the inscription "Killer of the Year". But after fact-checking, conducted by hibrid.info, no evidence has been found that proves that this magazine published this cover. (here)
Fake news
A TikTok account called “sherbimisekret1945” has published a video on TikTok claiming that there will be war in Kosovo and Bosnia. According to the same claim, the video in question mentions the date of January 18 when such a thing is expected to happen, referring to the secret service from London, as stated further in the caption. Hibrid.info has investigated the claim, but has not found any basis to support what is stated in the claim. (here)
A Facebook page called “Shneta” has published a video showing footage of an accident between a car and a truck. This video is captioned “Live accident, on a Kosovo highway”. After fact-checking by hibrid.info, no facts were found to support the claim that the event took place in Kosovo, while this video has been circulating on the internet since December 23, 2023. (here)
A TikTok account, named “mtrks25”, has published a video showing footage from military exercises. The caption on the video claims that the footage shows moments from exercises of the Kosovo Police Special Units, allegedly before a possible terrorist attack. Hibrid.info has verified the material and confirmed that the footage was taken from exercises by the Azerbaijani military forces. (here)
Clickbait / Disinformation
The portal "kercova.net" on December 31 published on its Facebook page an article titled "Switzerland, this sector has a shortage of workers..!". After fact-checking by hibrid.info, it was confirmed that the news is old, since the date January 6, 2023 appears in the content of the article. (here)
Checking and evaluating statements
Prime Minister Albin Kurti had stated that the Pristina - Gjilan highway would be completed and inaugurated within 2023. After verification by hibrid.info, it has been confirmed that there is no official announcement that the opening of this highway has occurred in 2023. (here)