Last fakes of the week
30 March 2026
“We were shocked.” ONT TV channel falsely attributed remarks about Iran’s strength to Donald Trump
ONT TV channel said that the intensity of Iran’s strikes surprised Donald Trump. They showed a snippet of his conversation with reporters to prove it. However, in the original comment, he was referring to the stock market’s reaction to rising oil prices. He wasn’t shocked by Iran’s power or expecting it to fall soon.
misrepresentation, USA, Iran, All-National TV channel, Alexander Averkau, politics, war.
27 March 2026
“For the first time in the history of Christianity.” Azaronak twisted the history of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
The host of the CTV program Azaryonok. Napryamuyu claimed that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem had been closed to visitors for the first time in 1,200 years. The Weekly Top Fake team found that this is not the case: the church has been closed in recent years and earlier periods, and services are still ongoing.
misrepresentation, Israel, CTV TV channel, Ryhor Azaronak, religion.
26 March 2026
“Belarusians are a nation of readers.” How officials and state media distort data on reading and book print runs in Belarus
Against the backdrop of the Minsk International Book Fair, state media once again highlighted Belarusians’ supposed love of reading and claimed that book circulation is on the rise. The Weekly Top Fake team discovered that these statements conflict with official statistics. The number of published books and their total print run have decreased in the country in recent years, and according to sociologists, the number of Belarusians who read regularly remains low.
misrepresentation, Belarus, Alpha Radio, Belarus Today, BelTA, Vadim Shepet, Alexander Khizhnyak, Denis Yezersky, literature.
25 March 2026
What about the alternation of power? The editor-in-chief of Minsk Kurier accused Israel of being insufficiently democratic
Speaking on CTV, the expert said that, just as in Belarus, there has been no real alternation of power in Israel since Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly become Prime Minister. The Weekly Top Fake team found that this comparison is inaccurate. Netanyahu has served as prime minister several times, but not consecutively. During Aleksandr Lukashenko’s time in power, Israel has had six different prime ministers.
misrepresentation, Israel, CTV TV channel, Kirill Kazakov, politics, elections.
23 March 2026
Did Poland abandon its own people? A Belarusian radio station compared the approaches of Warsaw and Minsk regarding the evacuation of their citizens from the Middle East
fabrication, Poland, Belarus, Iran, UAE, International Radio Belarus, Tomasz Szmydt, David Carbonaro, war, refugees.