Did the Illuminati start the Hamas-Israel conflict to make a human sacrifice and feed astral demons? No, that's not true: The current conflict started when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. There is no evidence the Illuminati exist The claim appeared in a video on TikTok (archived here) by @elkurtatok.ebred.a.nep on October 13, 2023. The narrator of the video…

Is a video evidence of a Hamas rocket reversing and striking a Gaza hospital in October 2023? No, that's not true: The video had already appeared on social media in 2022, long before the devastating explosion at Al-Ahli hospital, where hundreds were killed. The claim appeared in a video on TikTok (archived here) by @klaudia_rafael on October 18, 2023, under…

Did European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen say that Israel has the right to defend itself even by cutting off water and electricity in the Gaza Strip? No, that's not true: She supports the right of Israel to defend itself but with full respect of international humanitarian law. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok by…

Are most Israelis descendants of the Khazars, who established a medieval empire that ruled much of modern-day Ukraine, thus undermining their ancestral claim to the Holy Land? No, that's not true: Geneticists and historians have investigated this theory, long accepted as fact by many, and turned up no evidence to support it. The claim appeared in a Hungarian-language video (archived…

Did Muslim men film themselves smashing a statue of the Virgin Mary in Europe, betraying their plan to "invade" the continent? No, that's not true: The clip was shot near the city of Idlib, Syria, in 2013 by members of the Nusra Front, a jihadist group struggling to overthrow Syrian President Bashar Assad, according to Arabic-language media. Idlib was home…

Did "Palestinian terrorists" carry out five attacks that killed hundreds of people in France, Belgium and Germany? No, that's not true: The perpetrators were of Arab origin but were not Palestinians. All have been linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), an Islamic extremist group that is not the same as Hamas, the Palestinian political party…

Did President Joe Biden leave Israel just two hours before the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023? No, that's not true: White House press releases prove he was in Washington, D.C. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok published by @tomika2121 on October 9, 2023, under the title (translated from Hungarian into English by Lead Stories staff):…

A szupermarketek becsapják az embereket azzal, hogy nehéz műanyag tálcákat használnak a gyümölcs- és zöldségmérlegeken? Nem, ez nem igaz: a rendszeresen ellenőrzött mérlegeket a tálcák használatával kalibrálják nullára. Az állítás egy TikTok videóban (archiválva itt) jelent meg 2023. október 1-jén az „am 60 ft-ot spóroltunk a hagymán" leírással. A videó feliratain a következő olvasható: Mutatom, hogy vernek át a szupermarketekben.…

Did Pál Veres, mayor of Hungary's fourth-largest city, Miskolc, say public transportation "is not my job?" No, that's not true: His quote was edited. Veres was admonishing members of the Miskolc City Council who have no experience in urban mobility matters to defer to experts' opinions on revamping the city's mass-transit network. The claim appeared in a Hungarian-language video (archived…

Is Hungary's governing Fidesz party replacing indigenous Hungarians with Ukrainian Jews and other foreigners? No, that's not true: The claim focuses on a refugee center in Hungary that hosts observant Jews fleeing the war in Ukraine, most of whom did not stay for long. And while the total number of foreigners residing in Hungary has increased since Fidesz came to…

Are Ukrainian refugee men deported back home by the EU for compulsory military conscription? No, that's not true: The video in which this claim appeared shows a young man clutching what he says is an EU expulsion order, but it is actually a Spanish document that refugees use to obtain temporary protection status. Ukrainian diplomatic institutions have no authority to…

Is Hungary's government planning to bring in 500,000 migrant workers to fill industrial jobs that it expects to create in the coming years, "replacing" Hungarian laborers? No, that's not true: Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, an anti-immigrant firebrand, said his administration will give priority to workers from Hungary and neighboring countries with sizable ethnic-Hungarian populations. Guest workers will be hired as…

Are Hungarian teachers resigning en masse due to the new "status law," which alters the conditions of their employment? No, that's not true: While Hungary is struggling with a shortage of teachers, it is too early to tell if the law is responsible. A government minister said around 500 teachers had left their jobs as of July 27, 2023, adding…

Does a list of indispensable government employees mean the state plans to fire those not on the list and give their jobs to migrants? No, that's not true: According to news reports, the government is collecting data on the public sector labor force in order to estimate the minimum capacity needed to run the state, but there are no plans…

Az új személyi igazolványok egy rejtélyes terv miatt legkésőbb 2030-ban lejárnak? Nem, ez nem igaz: a magyar személyi igazolványok érvényességi ideje 2016 óta hat év, ezért nem volt senkinek 2030 után lejáró igazolványa 2023-ban. Az állítás egy TikTok videóban jelent meg (archiválva itt) 2023. augusztus 2-án a következő felirattal: Akik mostanában újítottak meg személyi igazolványt azok nézzék már meg legyenek…

Did international sports associations ban Russian athletes from their events as part of an ethnic-hate campaign, the likes of which have not been seen "since the Holocaust?" No, that's not true: Russians have been forbidden to compete in international sports events as punishment for a doping scandal and for their government's decision to invade Ukraine in 2022. The ban is…

Did George and Alex Soros decide to fire the co-editor in chief of Telex.hu, Veronika Munk? No, that's not true: Alex or George Soros are not owners of Telex.hu's company and there is no evidence that they have decision-making power or any connection to the newspaper. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) published by David Filep aka "A…

Did media associated with Hungary's left-wing opposition defend a reckless driver who led police on a high-speed chase on a motorway near Budapest? No, that's not true: The author of the claim edited a soundbite to create the impression that a TV reporter was sticking up for the driver, when she was actually relaying a quote from his family. Moreover,…

Was a rehabilitation center for children affected by muscular atrophy turned into a hotel for migrant workers, in Agárd, on Lake Velence, in Hungary? No, that's not true: The rehabilitation center is still operational while the connected Sport Hotel, a barrier-free facility nearby, suspended its services and reportedly rented its rooms to workers of a nearby factory. The claim appeared…

Are stadiums being built in Hungary to "be like FEMA camps," where, in case of "people awakening, the masses can be collected and executed?" No, that's not true: The myth about the hundreds of camps allegedly built by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the United States was debunked several times and there is no evidence proving that anyone…