FACT CHECK: Image Claims To Show Ukrainian Troops Pretending To Be In Front Of Kursk

Elias Atienza | Senior Reporter

An image shared on X claims to show Ukrainian troops pretending to be in front of Kursk.

Verdict: False

The image was generated by artificial intelligence.

Fact Check:

Ukraine launched an incursion into Russia’s Kursk oblast earlier in August and has continued to advance into Russian territory, according to Reuters. This has given Ukrainians a morale boost as the country continues to lose territory in the eastern part of Ukraine to Russian advances, the outlet reported.

Social media users are claiming an image shows Ukrainian troops pretending to enter Kursk. One user wrote,”OMG, all is lost!… Orcs, surrender!!… Ukrops are entering Kursk!!!…Wait a second… That’s not the Russian letter ‘У’… That’s a ‘Y’…”

This claim is false. The image has been generated by artificial intelligence. One indication is that the man holding the flag has six fingers, while others include inconsistencies with the patches. (RELATED: No, Video Of A Patriot Launcher Is Not From Ukraine)

Check Your Fact also ran the image through Hive Moderation, which is a tool that detects content created by artificial intelligence. The tool found that the image had a 99% chance of being created by artificial intelligence. The engine that created the image appears to be Stable Diffusion.

Screenshot/Hive Moderation

Social media users using images created by artificial intelligence is not new. For example, Check Your Fact recently debunked an image claiming to show Pope Francis with a rainbow scarf.

Elias Atienza

Senior Reporter
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