Facebook posts falsely claim that the World Economic Forum (WEF) has called for “millions of cats and dogs worldwide to be slaughtered” to fight climate change. The false claim appears to originate from a website that has previously spread misinformation. AFP found no trace of such an initiative and a WEF representative said the allegation was baseless.
Social media posts claim record snow cover in the northern hemisphere in November 2022 is evidence against climate change. This is false; experts say a single month’s measurement does not disprove the overall global warming trend, and data show snow extent varies and that cover has decreased.
After Oxfordshire County Council in southeast England approved a £6.5 million ($7.93 million) trial to reduce traffic congestion, false posts wrongly suggested that councillors had approved a “climate lockdown” for 2024. The council’s spokesperson said that residents would be free to move around the city and no lockdown had been ordered. A campaigner who backed the trial told AFP the scheme aims to help to reduce congestion, while an Oxfordshire councillor who opposed the trial said the social media posts were “untrue”.
Facebook posts shared thousands of times in Africa claim that a Lufthansa plane carrying the German football team to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup tournament was banned from landing because of its “gay logo”. But the claim is false: the players flew to Oman on the so-called “Diversity” plane for a friendly match, before switching to a smaller aircraft without any branding to head to Qatar. AFP Fact Check also found that “Diversity” landed in Doha on at least three occasions in November 2022.
After Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited South Korea, misleading social media posts emerged mocking officials for purportedly holding a “welcome reception” for the leader at a building site. While Sanchez genuinely visited the construction site of a Spanish cultural institute in Seoul, he was officially welcomed at a ceremony at the South Korean presidential office.
Facebook, Twitter and Telegram posts circulating in various languages falsely claim that German authorities have banned vaccinated people from buying or driving a car. The German insurers’ federation and the country’s biggest motoring association rejected the claims, while the transport ministry said it had not changed legislation for vaccinated drivers and had no plans to do so.