Did the Ukrainian military run recruitment ads seeking women to serve as military drone operators?
NewsGuard’s “False Claim of the Week” highlights a claim from NewsGuard’s False Claim Fingerprints, a proprietary database of provably false claims and their debunks. This week’s claim is that a Ukrainian train struck by a Russian drone was carrying former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other dignitaries. It is NewsGuard’s “False Claim of the Week” due to its widespread appearance across social media platforms and websites, its high engagement levels, and the high-profile nature of the sources promoting it. Those three factors, as well as its significant subject matter and potential for harm, make it our False Claim of the Week.
By Alice Lee
What’s happening: Pro-Kremlin websites and social media users are claiming that a train that was struck by a Russian drone in Western Ukraine in September 2026 was carrying the former U.K. Prime Minister and long-time Ukraine ally Boris Johnson and other notable figures. The claim is apparently aimed at suggesting that Russia has succeeded in targeting several key Ukrainian allies.
In fact, the Russian drone hit a different train.
Context: On Sept. 13,...
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi recently took his bogus ‘Vote Chori‘ claims to a new level and accused the BJP and the Election Commission of India (ECI) of “Party Chori” (Party theft). In a post mad...