💸 A Belarusian oligarch profits from a dissident passport project. @belarusfiles.bsky.social' “Passportgate” follows the money from Lukashenko’s circle to a Lithuanian firm hired to help exiled Belarusians, revealing some connection: investigatebel.org/en/investiga... #IJ4EU

1/3 Lukashenko’s proxies funneled $35 million in 2024 from the state owned Grodno Azot by inserting shell companies along the supply chain of the SOE’s #sanctions evading exports to the EU, BIC’s investigation reveals.

🏚️ Hopeless citizens living in chaos, betrayed by their immoral governments: Belarusian #propaganda has intensified its #disinformation attacks on #EU countries, with narratives shifting towards social & economic policies. 👉 Read the new investigation by @belarusfiles.bsky.social: loom.ly/JWSsF58

"Their equipment is top-notch!" - authors of state-affiliated Telegram channel ZhS Premium quipped about #Lithuanian farmers. The sight of old tractors at a Vilnius protest set off some controversy. We've found that organizers deliberately brought vintage vehicles. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Fake about retro tractors in Lithuania from "ZhS Premium"

Telegram channel presented the symbolic gesture of farmers as a sign of backwardness - the equipment was brought to the action intentionally.

investigatebel.org

Belarusian average salaries have reached the level of #Portugal, said Alexander Kalinin, head of the Belarusian Entrepreneurs’ Union. Our fact-checking team set out to verify whether that’s true (spoiler - no). investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Do Belarusian salaries really measure up to those in Europe? Examining the claim made on ONT

The head of the entrepreneurs’ union on ONT claimed the average Belarusian salary is on par with Portugal’s. But a fact-check showed the actual gap is nearly twofold.

investigatebel.org

A Belarusian state fertilizer company under EU sanctions has found a way around the export ban by leasing its production lines to intermediary firms that pose as manufacturers, according to the Belarusian Investigative Center @belarusfiles.bsky.social: www.occrp.org/en/news/bela...

Belarusian Fertilizer Company Dodging EU Sanctions, Leaked Documents Show

The Belarusian Investigative Center has obtained documents revealing how the state-owned Grodno Azot company continues exports via Latvia.

occrp.org

1/4 After Lithuania and Poland cracked down on evasion schemes by #Belarus monopolist producer of nitrogen fertilisers, the routes switched to Latvia, a new investigation by BIC, ‪LSM and Rabochy Rukh reveals.

‪1/4 Almost a thousand of wounded Russian soldiers were treated in Belarusian hospitals during the early months of the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, revealed BIC together with Ukrainian and Russian services of @rferl.org.web.brid.gy through a leaked Russian Ministry of Defense database.

NEW: The Telegram messaging app has a reputation for security — but Important Stories found that its technical infrastructure is run by a man whose companies closely collaborate with Russian intelligence services. Meet Vladimir Vedeneev 👇

Fact Check: Video Game Footage Does NOT Show Actual Destruction of Russian Strategic Bombers #CheckTok #FactCheck #RussianStrategicBombers #TUBombers #UkrainianFPVDrone #ARMA3 leadstories.com/hoax-alert/2...

Judging by the rankings, #Belarus is more appealing to tourists than #Poland, #Lithuania or #Latvia, boasted an anchor of the Minsk-News agency Viktoria Kirichenko. We decided to find out where Belarus really stands. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Did Belarus surpass Poland in tourism attractiveness? Checking the rankings

A Minsk-News anchor claimed that Belarus made the top 50 and surpassed Poland. The WTF team found Belarus’ actual ranking on the list.

investigatebel.org

Belarusian political analyst Pyotr Petrovsky claimed that Poland’s economy declined over the past five years and that average Polish wages aren’t much higher than in #Belarus. We have found that he used the wrong years and the wrong figures. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Petrovsky's two fakes about Poland: GDP and wages

Political analyst Pyotr Petrovsky called the past five years a disaster for Poland and claimed that Poles earn low incomes. The WTF team fact-checked his numbers.

investigatebel.org

Have you ever seen a brand-new, authentic Balenciaga jacket for $4? Or a Dolce & Gabbana quilted vest priced at $6.50? These are the declared prices for luxury garments shipped by a Belarusian company from the EU to Russia to circumvent sanctions, @belarusfiles.bsky.social reports.

A Fashionable Scheme: The Belarusian Company Bringing Luxury Goods to Russia - The Moscow Times

An intermediary linked to a businessman close to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko imports luxury goods to Russia by reporting artificially low prices in customs documents to circumvent sancti...

themoscowtimes.com

1/3 A #Belarusian luxury pipeline funnelling high-end clothing into Russia at artificially low prices, bypassing #EU and US restrictions and slashing taxes, has been uncovered by the Belarusian Investigative Center and partners.

A Finnish businessman wanted in connection with one of the largest corruption scandals in Finland’s history has been quietly evading justice in Belarus for the past five years, according to @belarusfiles.bsky.social.

Shelter from Interpol: How a Finnish Criminal Found a New Life and Business in Belarus - The Moscow Times

A Finnish businessman wanted in connection with one of the largest corruption scandals in Finland’s history has been quietly evading justice in Belarus for the past five years, according to a new inve...

themoscowtimes.com

#Europe has become a symbol of despair and bankruptcy, said state TV channel #Belarus 1 anchor Sergei Gusachenko, citing footage of closed Lithuanian factories as evidence. We found some of them are still very much alive. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Belarus 1 showed several companies in its report that are still up and running

Europe has become a symbol of despair and bankruptcy, said Belarus 1 anchor Sergei Gusachenko, citing footage of closed Lithuanian factories as evidence. The Weekly Top Fake team looked into it and fo...

investigatebel.org

In 2024, Slovak authorities lifted a ban on May 9 celebrations, claimed Belarus' House of Representatives member Vadim Gigin, describing how “the enemy failed to erase the memory.” We have investigated whether such a ban ever existed. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Was May 9 ever banned in Slovakia? Fact-checking Gigin's claim

Deputy Gigin claimed that Slovakia allowed celebrations of Victory Day. WTF checked whether a ban had ever existed.

investigatebel.org

Finland issued an international arrest warrant through Interpol for Arto Kalevi Autio, who fled fraud charges connected to a major embezzlement scandal. But Autio could remain a free man if he is not arrested by the end of the year, @belarusfiles.bsky.social revealed www.occrp.org/en/news/char...

Charges Set to Expire for Finnish Fraud Case Fugitive, Police Say

Arto Autio has been charged with fraud for his alleged role in a major embezzlement scandal in Finland.

occrp.org

A mastermind behind multi-million-euro fraud schemes, once siphoning money from across the Baltic states and #Finland, Arto Kalevi Autio resides freely in Minsk despite both Europol and #Interpol issuing arrest warrants for him, BIC together with partners found. investigatebel.org/en/investiga...

What Finnish criminal Arto Kalevi Autio is doing in Belarus and why Interpol is looking for him

Finnish businessman Arto Kalevi Autio, who was on Europol's most wanted list back in 2024, has been living in Minsk for five years. New investigation by the BIC.

investigatebel.org

The state has given young Belarusian professionals the gift of guaranteed employment after university, while in #Europe 75% of graduates are unemployed, said political analyst and host Vadim Yelfimov. We checked just how far off his numbers were. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Three out of four graduates in Europe jobless? Checking Yelfimov’s claim

A Radio Minsk host claimed most young professionals in Europe can’t find work. WTF checked the European Union’s statistics.

investigatebel.org

Nearly 40% of surveyed Poles said their financial situation had worsened compared to 2024, and 27% said it had significantly declined, the CTV News anchor reported, citing the results of a survey conducted in #Poland. Our team found her claim to be misleading. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

CTV: Nearly 70% of Poles have grown poorer But what’s the real story?

A CTV anchor exaggerated the results of a Polish survey by combining two figures. WTF dug into how many people actually reported financial hardship.

investigatebel.org

At the beginning of the full-scale invasion of #Ukraine, Russian army set up a filtration camp in #Belarus, BIC has discovered. Here is a short video revealing main details of the investigation and you can check the full version via the link: investigatebel.org/en/investiga...

#Belarus offers job opportunities to young professionals who earned their degrees abroad, education minister Andrei Ivanets claimed. In fact Belarus has recently introduced a process that could make it harder to recognize foreign degrees. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Fact-checking the minister’s claim about foreign university graduates

The education minister claims that graduates of foreign universities easily find jobs in Belarus. WTF checks the facts.

investigatebel.org

#WPFD2025: Join us tomorrow for this event on supporting journalism under severe political pressure. We’ll discuss the situation of Russian & Belarusian journalists in exile. Co-org: @oscemediafreedom.bsky.social 📆 6 May, 4:00 pm 🌎 Geopolis Photojournalism Centre, #Brussels Meet the speakers👇

WPFD 2025: How can we better support Russian and Belarusian journalists in exile?

According to the European Commission, 1,500 independent journalists and editorial newsrooms from Russia and Belarus were estimated to have fled or ...

europeanjournalists.org

#Russia: Journalist Ekaterina Barabash recounted her escape from Russia, where she faced a ten-year prison sentence, at RSF headquarters in Paris today. The journalist is now safe in France thanks to an exfiltration operation coordinated by RSF.

RSF exfiltrates Ekaterina Barabash: the Russian journalist’s escape from Moscow to Paris

On 5 May, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) held a press conference at its headquarters to present Ekaterina Barabash to the press. The Russian journalist and film critic disappeared from Moscow, where ...

rsf.org

A claim that two Russian spies were found with US defence secretary Pete Hegseth’s private number when they were arrested cites Der Spiegel as its source. But the German outlet told Full Fact that it hasn't published such a story.

German news outlet did not report Russian spies had US defence secretary’s phone number - Full Fact

A claim that German intelligence arrested two Russian spies who had Pete Hegseth’s private number was attributed to Der Spiegel, but the publication confirmed it did not publish such a story.

buff.ly

#Belarus will be one of the first in the world to start using #5G technology nationwide, stated Andrey Mukovozchik, a commentator for "SB. Belarus Today" state TV show. We found out that Belarus is actually several years behind. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Belarus among the first to launch nationwide 5G?

Andrey Mukovozchik called Belarus one of the leaders in deploying 5G. WTF checked just how far behind we are and who's ahead of us.

investigatebel.org

Youtube Channel "Minsk Pravda": Belarus holds the top spot in the terrorist safety rankings. We checked what the actual ranking is. investigatebel.org/en/fakenews/...

Belarus — a leader in terrorism safety?

The anchor of "Minsk Pravda" called Belarus a leader in the terrorism safety ranking. WTF investigated how far off her claim was.

investigatebel.org

What we learned from #Russian pranksters’ recording and who is manipulatively spreading the statements of #Nanuashvili and #Zourabichvili? - Read here 👇

What We Learned from Russian Pranksters’ Recording and Who Is Manipulatively Spreading the Statements of Nanuashvili and Zoura

In April 2025, the Russian pranksters Vovan and Lexus spoke with Georgia’s fifth president, Salome Zourabichvili, and the head of

mythdetector.com

#WebQoof | A fake letter is being circulated to falsely claim that mass resignations took place in Pakistan's army following tensions with India after the Pahal gam attack. Read here. www.thequint.com/news/webqoof...

Viral Letter About Mass Resignations in Pakistan Army Is Fake!

Fact-Check: A letter stating that a mass resignation was taking place in Pakistan's army following the attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir has gone viral. However, we did not find any credible sou...

thequint.com