Prepared by: Festim Rizanaj
Fake news and disinformation have dominated the digital infosphere over the past week as two main categories of misinformation.
Over the past week, fake news about political issues has been circulating on Facebook and TikTok. A post in the “Diaspora with PDK” group claimed that Albin Kurti and Haki Abazi had received 17 million euros from BIA, but this accusation was not supported by any credible source. Meanwhile, a claim was spread on TikTok that NATO had declared that Kosovo would join the EU before Albania, which upon verification turned out to be untrue.
Disinformation was spread on military and historical issues on Facebook and TikTok. A post from the page “75% for Albin” claimed that Kosovo had acquired an anti-aircraft system from Turkey, using an old photo of Defense Minister Ejup Maqedonci. Verification found that this claim is not supported by any source. Meanwhile, a post on TikTok claimed that Ibrahim Rugova was the most voted leader ever in Kosovo, based on figures from 2001. However, those figures belonged to the LDK, as there was no direct voting for candidates at that time.
A scam was spread on Instagram through the account “berylofficial1,” which shared a link claiming that users could earn money. After verification, it was found that the domain associated with this post was a scam and did not offer any real earning opportunities.
Unverified content was published on the information portal "Indeksonline" where, through a photo of football player Luka Modric, it was claimed that he was working at a gas station on March 12, 2007. In fact, he was part of a promotional campaign as a Dinamo Zagreb player.
Last week, articles with clickbait headlines that create ambiguity were published. “Demokracia.com” reported on March 9 a news item with an ambiguous title about a quoted statement, without specifying its author. Meanwhile, “RTV 21” on March 14 published a headline about the student boycott during Ramadan, without specifying the location of the event.
The manipulation of the fact was published on March 11, in a Russian media outlet in Serbian, where it was claimed that Albanians in Pristina welcomed the NATO head with KLA and Dardania flags. In fact, the KLA flag had been placed by the PSD since 2021 and had no connection to Rutte's visit.
The conspiracy theory was published on March 15, with Serbian-language media outlets spreading claims that Pristina was supporting protesters in Belgrade who were demanding responsibility for the deaths of 15 people in Novi Sad. The articles claimed that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti was supporting the protest, attempting to link this to reporting in Kosovo about the protest.
Fake news
A recent post claims that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti and MP Haki Abazi received 17 million euros from the Serbian secret service (BIA) in 2015. According to this claim, the information was discovered by a Serbian agent. The post was published on March 9 in a Facebook group called “Diaspora with PDK”. After an investigation conducted by hibrid.info, no reliable source was found to confirm this accusation. Furthermore, the post is written with numerous spelling errors, an unusual feature for a news item published by serious media. (here)
It has been claimed on TikTok that NATO leaders have made statements that Kosovo will join the European Union faster than Albania. The claim was accompanied by a photo of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte from his visit to Kosovo. However, after verifying the facts, it turns out that this was not said by Rutte or other NATO leaders. (here)
Lies
A domain has been found that claims to make money. This link was found on an Instagram account with the name “berylofficial1”. Hibrid.info has found that the content of this domain is fraudulent. (here)
Unverified content
The information portal "Indeksonline" has published a photo of Luka Modric on Facebook with the caption that claims that on March 12, 2007 he worked at a gas station, while today, on March 12, 2025, he will play against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. This claim does not hold true, since on March 12, 2007, Luka Modric was not a gas station worker, but was only part of a promotional campaign, where for one day he symbolically played the role of a gas station worker, while he was still a Dinamo Zagreb player. (here)
disinformation
On March 10, a Facebook post from the page “75% for Albin” claimed that Kosovo is being continuously supplied with weapons and that an anti-aircraft system had been provided by Turkey. The post included a photo of Defense Minister Ejup Maqedonci next to a piece of military equipment. After verification by hibrid.info, it was found that this claim is not supported by any facts. Furthermore, the photo used in the post is old and dates from October 24, 2024. (here)
In a TikTok post, the account “muli0087” claimed that Ibrahim Rugova, former LDK leader, was the most voted leader ever in Kosovo’s parliamentary elections, based on figures from 2001. But those figures represent votes for the party, the LDK, and not for candidate Rugova. At that time, it was not possible to vote directly for a specific candidate within a party. (here)
Clickbait
An article titled, "was publishedKurti defends Arsenijevic's party that heroized terrorist Milan Radojcic: 'A millionaire who grabs a gun is something to be respected'. The article in question was published on March 9 by the medium "demokracia.com". Hibrid.info assesses that the title was written in such a way that it is not clear who made the statement quoted within it. (here)
An article titled, “Some students boycott classes, demand shorter classes during Ramadan” is published. This news was published today (March 14) on the “Radio Television 21” portal. Hibrid.info has found that the location of this event is not clarified in this title. (here)
Manipulation of facts
The Russian media outlet, the Serbian-language service, published an article on March 11, claiming that Albanians in Pristina welcomed the NATO leader with the flags of the KLA and Dardania. The factual data shows that the KLA flag was placed by the PSD in 2021 and is not related to Rutte's visit. (here)
Conspiracy theory
Through articles published on Saturday (March 15), Serbian-language media outlets have claimed that “Pristina is offering support to the blockers” in the protest organized today in Belgrade. These articles were published at the time of the protest organized by Serbian students, who are seeking responsibility for the deaths of 15 people on November 1, 2024, from the collapse of a railway station shelter in Novi Sad. The articles have claimed that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti supports the protesters. They have tried to link this through reports being made in Kosovo about the protest in Belgrade.