Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the Estonian authorities are forcing Ukrainian refugees to join the local army, threatening deportation. Like, if the Ukrainian refugees do not stand up in defense of Estonia, they will be returned back to Ukraine. The authors allegedly refer to the statement of the Embassy of Ukraine in Estonia - this is not true.

The case was noticed by the experts of the StopFake project, who determined that Ukrainian refugees in Estonia are not mobilized or sent to the front. The propagandists simply came up with such information. Fact-checkers turned to the Ukrainian Embassy in Estonia for comment, where they were also told that the information about the mobilization of Ukrainian refugees into the Estonian army is not true. In addition, analysts checked a special website in Estonia created for Ukrainian refugees. Among the published information, they did not find any evidence of mobilization into the Estonian army.

By spreading such a fake, propagandists want to undermine the authority of Ukraine's brother countries. Allegedly, they really use the Ukrainians, for example, by mobilizing them into their own army. Thus, Russian propaganda demonizes Ukrainian partners and seeks to cause mistrust towards them.

We recall that earlier we refuted a fake, which also had the goal of defiling the vision of Ukrainian partners and exposing them with bad intentions. We are talking about the case that the Polish authorities allegedly would use Ukrainians as cheap labor in order to subsequently provide a good life for the Poles.

On April 13, a text appeared on the Facebook page of the Polish organization Kancelaria LEGA ARTIS, according to which “38% of Ukrainians who, under the cover of the “war” came to Poland and have “groundlessly granted them rights”, in particular to receive social assistance, they want to stay in the country and not return to Ukraine. This is manipulation.

Analysts of the Polish project Demagog drew attention to it. They note that in the text one can find doubts that the war in Ukraine is real, and the refugees are called ones who “have come in large numbers”. However, the war continues, and its effects are a large number of deaths and material losses. The term “come in large numbers” is part of a disinformation campaign that wants to show the migration of Ukrainians as a threat to the Poles. Demagog experts argue that such a narrative is part of a conspiracy theory called the “Big replacement theory”, according to which the influx of migrants is a conspiracy in which white Europeans should be replaced by migrants. Usually, Muslims appear in this theory, but in the Polish context, their role was given to Ukrainians.

The text also contains information about “unreasonably provided” funds in the framework of social payments for Ukrainian migrants. However, analysts have found that the concept of social payment is clearly defined in Polish law. According to it, a social benefit is a cash benefit provided to persons who are unfit for work due to age or disability (Article 37 of the Law on social assistance). This cash payment cannot exceed PLN 719. According to article 5 of the same law, citizens of Poland, as well as foreigners (not only Ukrainians) residing in the state, have the right to receive social assistance payments. According to Article 31 of the Law on assistance to citizens of Ukraine, Ukrainians who have received a PESEL identification number can receive a lump sum payment of PLN 300. Therefore, this payment is not regular.

In addition, in the text you can see the stereotype that the majority of Ukrainian refugees in Poland came from the western regions, so they allegedly do not need help. However, it is not like that. Project analysts interviewed people who are actively involved in the affairs of Ukrainian refugees in Poland and found out that most of them eventually came from the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine.

Thus, the propagandists want to show that the Ukrainian refugees are supposedly swindlers and pose a threat to Poland as a whole. They say that Ukrainians in Poland are ungrateful for help, but actually help does not reach those in need.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular in the Polish segment of Facebook. Reports say that Ukrainians will be able to vote in the upcoming elections, because they have the corresponding PESEL document. The authors of the messages add that the result of the elections is predetermined, and that “real Poles” should no longer go to the elections. It is not true.

The fact-checkers of the Polish project Demagog took up the case, they explained that the presence of PESEL does not give people the right to participate in elections: both to choose and to be elected. Powszechny Elektroniczny System Ewidencji Ludności (PESEL), that is, the Universal Electronic Population Registration System, is an eleven-digit numeric character that identifies an individual. However, the possession of PESEL does not guarantee the citizenship of the country, and the person does not acquire it upon receipt of this document. And only citizens of Poland can vote in parliamentary or presidential elections.

A foreigner can obtain Polish citizenship after fulfilling a number of conditions, in particular, a certain period of continuous residence in Poland. And only under this condition, when a person acquires citizenship, he or she can vote. No other way exists.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that with the influx of Ukrainian refugees, the crime rate has risen significantly. Like, among the criminals in Poland there are many Ukrainian refugees. The authors of the messages refer to the research of the local analytical center UCE Research, as well as supposedly to the data of the Polish police. The authors argue that free entry into the European Union “became a good opportunity to realize their criminal intentions”. However, this is fake.

The case was noticed by experts from the StopFake project, they studied that from the reports published on the UCE Research platform, there is no information that the increase in crime in the country was due to the appearance of refugees from Ukraine.

Another source allegedly confirming the thesis about the increase in crime in Poland because of the Ukrainians is the police. However, the Polish police do not provide such data. Ukrainian refugees are mentioned in the annual reports only in the context of the fact that the tasks of the police officers were to protect the places where refugees were staying, the Polish police officers “led and helped organize a meeting for Ukrainians, organized numerous meetings with Ukrainians, and some of them provided them with their homes and helped them find themselves in a foreign country and in a new situation”. None of the police reports talk about the fault of Ukrainian refugees in the increase in the number of crimes in 2022.

One of the materials that really reveals the topic of crimes committed by foreigners in Poland is an article in the publication Rzeczpospolita, which analyzes what crimes were committed by migrants in Poland in 2022. The Main Directorate of the National Police has prepared statistics on crimes committed by foreigners in Poland especially for the publication. So, in total, in 2022, 15 thousand crimes were committed by representatives of different nationalities, most often Ukrainians, as the largest group, as well as Belarusians and Georgians, were included in the statistics. The most common type of crime among foreigners, notes Rzeczpospolita, is driving while intoxicated. In second place in popularity is possession of drugs.

Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to present Ukrainian refugees as criminals or terrorists, as a cultural and economic threat to the EU, in order to reduce support for Ukraine. We mentioned this in our own investigation.

Analysts of Detector Media denied a number of fakes and manipulations on the topic of Ukrainian refugees in Poland. For example, we analyzed the manipulation of increasing thefts in Polish stores by a third allegedly because of Ukrainian refugees. And we also explained another manipulation, using which propagandists claimed that the attitude of many Poles towards Ukrainians had worsened.

Such information appeared in the Polish segment of social networks, in particular, on Twitter. Reports say that Poland's annual budget for helping the homeless in 2023 is PLN 5 million. Like, for Ukrainian refugees, Poland “spends” such an amount “in 5 minutes”. It is not true.

The case was investigated by the Polish fact-checkers of the Demagog project, who found that in 2023 the implementation of the government program “Overcoming homelessness” is PLN 5.5 million. However, these are not the only funds allocated in Poland to combat homelessness. The government program is an additional bonus, payments for organizations working in the field of social protection. This is not the general budget of the country. For example, in the budget of Gdansk for 2023, more than 11.7 million złotys are provided for “the development of a support system for homeless people and those at risk of being left without a home”. Moreover, this is only the local budget, significantly exceeding the amount indicated as stable (5 million) by the authors of the messages. 

By spreading such a fake, the authors of the messages seek to convince that Ukrainian refugees are treated better than Poles. Allegedly, Poland does not care about its inhabitants. Analysts of Detector Media denied a number of fakes and manipulations on the topic of Ukrainian refugees in Poland. For example, we refuted the manipulation of increasing the level of theft in Polish stores because of Ukrainians. We also explained another manipulation, saying that the attitude of many Poles towards Ukrainians has worsened.

Such information is disseminated in pro-Kremlin propaganda media and on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric. Reports say last week Ukrainian refugees allegedly burned down a historic 400-year-old hotel in Midhurst, West Sussex, England. Like, the Ukrainians are criminals, and if it had not been for them, the building would have survived. It is not true.

The fire on North Street in Midhurst did indeed occur on March 16, and it did not only affect the Angel Inn, which the propagandists write about. Ukrainian refugees also really lived in a hotel. According to local authorities, 30 people were evacuated from the hotel due to the fire, including “several” Ukrainian refugees. However, claims that it was the Ukrainians who set the fire are unfounded.

The fact checkers of the StopFake project drew attention to the case. They found out that local media wrote that the fire first started in the early morning in a nearby house on North Street, and only then spread to the roof of the nearby Angel Inn. “But not only this fact, but also the preliminary findings of the West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service do not confirm any involvement of Ukrainian refugees in the fire”. A spokesman for the fire service told the BBC: “Preliminary investigations indicate that there are no suspicious circumstances associated with this fire, but our investigation is ongoing”, the fact-checkers wrote.

This is not the first fake of Russian propaganda about “bad” Ukrainian refugees. For example, propagandists have already claimed that Ukrainians burned a forest in Germany. By spreading such fakes, propaganda wants to create for Ukrainian refugees the image of criminals who can, for example, set fire to the house they live in. This is how propagandists try to convince the audience that Ukrainians should not be supported. Read more about disinformation regarding Ukrainian refugees in the Detector Media investigation.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the level of shoplifting has increased significantly in Poland. Like, it's all because of the Ukrainian refugees, who “neglect all the laws”. The authors of the messages refer to the material of the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita, in which they allegedly investigated the issues of thefts involving Ukrainian refugees. This is manipulation.

The propagandists distorted the context of the entire material, because it was about the general trend of thefts in Poland. According to the data of the Police Headquarters, published by the Rzeczpospolita newspaper, in 2022 the number of shoplifting increased by 31.1%. Journalists explain that people steal mainly basic food products from small shops. They also stressed that organized crime groups are predominantly responsible for these thefts. At the same time, there was no mention of “Ukrainian refugees”. Although the material itself is titled “Poles are stealing goods from shops more and more”, the journalists investigated the general issue of thefts without appealing to specific people or age groups.

Russian propaganda systematically manipulates the issue of Ukrainian refugees abroad. Thus, they are trying to present Ukrainian refugees as criminals or terrorists, which is a cultural and economic threat to the EU in order to reduce support for Ukraine and Ukrainians. We wrote about this in our own investigation.

We recall that Detector Media previously also analyzed a manipulation in which propagandists claimed that, allegedly because of the Russian language, the attitude of many Poles towards Ukrainians worsened.

Such information was disseminated on social networks, in particular, in the German and Russian TikTok segments. Reports say Ukrainian refugees who have recently confirmed their status will be given 500 “greeting” euros. Like, this is an initiative of the Bundestag, which recently adopted a resolution and issue funds to Ukrainians “from the pockets of the Germans”.

The German group of fact-checkers Correctiv decided to check the information and contact the official representation in the Bundestag for a comment. The Bundestag denied such information and stressed that Ukrainian refugees do not receive any additional payments, including “greeting” money. The Bundestag also stressed that they are not creating a procedure for receiving cash payments; such a bill has not been submitted to parliament.

The Russian media disseminate information that due to the Ukrainians who left Ukraine because of Russian aggression, the use of the Russian language in Germany has allegedly increased. It is allegedly evidenced by the recently released data from the Destatis, Federal statistical office. It is not true.

The studies cited by the Russian media were conducted in 2021, that is, even before the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Moreover, the document states that the study does not reflect the possible consequences of changes in the German population due to Russian aggression, since only 2021 data was analyzed. Russian propaganda does not provide any explanation of how exactly the Ukrainian refugees influenced the use of different languages in Germany.

As StopFake explains, propagandists cite survey results showing that 80% of the German population only speak German at home, 15% also use one or more additional languages, and 5% do not use German at all in their families. The study showed that families who are not native German speakers use Turkish (15%), Russian (13%), Arabic (10%), Polish (7%) and English (6%) in everyday life. Similar data for 2022 is still being processed, they have not been published anywhere.

Російська пропаганда систематично маніпулює мовним питанням як в Україні, так і за кордоном. У такий спосіб вони намагаються розколоти суспільство за етно-національними ознаками. Раніше пропагандисти стверджували, що нібито через російську мову ставлення багатьох поляків до українців погіршилося.

Russian propaganda systematically manipulates the language issue, both in Ukraine and abroad. Thus, they are trying to split the society along ethno-national lines. Earlier, propagandists claimed that, allegedly because of the Russian language, the attitude of many Poles towards Ukrainians worsened.

This thesis was spread in social networks and in the media of the Polish segment. Reports say that Poles' attitude towards Ukrainians has worsened. Like, the majority of Ukrainians speak Russian and boast of expensive cars, which is typical for the “Russian world”. Therefore, the Poles allegedly feel hostility towards certain categories of Ukrainian refugees and say with confidence that the attitude has indeed changed for the worse. Later, the material was picked up by users and the media of the Ukrainian segment. The authors of the original article for Rzeczpospolita refer to a likely study conducted by the University of Warsaw, which allegedly refers to the deterioration of attitudes, and cite the words of the President of the Union of Ukrainians in Poland, which allegedly confirm these studies. This is manipulation.

The case was investigated by the fact-checkers of the NotaYenota project, who found that there was absolutely nothing about the “Russian world” or expensive cars in the study. The quote taken by the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita for their article belongs to the President of the Union of Ukrainians in Poland Myroslav Skorka. That is, this quote belongs to one person, although an official representing the interests of both Poles and Ukrainians, but this was not in the study and the quote does not represent its results. In the material itself, they are talking about the deterioration of the attitude of Poles towards Ukrainians, which was noted by Rzeczpospolita at the beginning of the article: “Many Poles are changing their attitude towards them [ed. Ukrainians] for the worse, research shows”.

According to the study, in January 2023, 80% of respondents had a positive attitude towards refugees from Ukraine. 8% of respondents perceived Ukrainians negatively, and 12% - presumably neutrally. When asked if the attitude towards refugees from Ukraine has changed over the past 6 months, that is, since June 2022, a quarter of Poles surveyed (25%) answered yes. Accordingly, for 75% the attitude towards Ukrainians has not changed. These 25% of respondents answered that the attitude has changed, without specifying how. That is why of the one quarter of those surveyed who further answered that their attitude had changed, 68% said that the attitude had changed in a negative direction. However, this is not representative, because in general nothing has changed for 75% of the respondents.

So, Rzeczpospolita journalists manipulated the data and used a quote from the President of the Union of Ukrainians as justification for their thesis, although according to the study, 75% of Poles have not changed their attitude towards Ukrainians.

Such a message is distributed in anonymous telegram channels. They say that many Ukrainians who were forced to move abroad fleeing away from the war do not want to return home and plan to stay forever in the EU countries. Propagandists cite various data as “evidence”. For example, allegedly Ukrainian migrants in Poland, primarily those who do not live in state aid centers for refugees, are guaranteed to receive a payment equal to 200 euros. That is why, according to propagandists, Ukrainian refugees will not want to return to Ukraine, where the economy is already teetering on the brink.

The authors of such reports deliberately miss the root cause of Ukrainian migration, namely Russian aggression, without naming it. In addition, the provision of payments for Ukrainian refugees in Poland does not depend on whether the person lives at the state aid center. Although the practice of guaranteed issuance of social benefits for Ukrainian refugees is widespread in Poland, these payments do not reach the level of 200 euros and are one-time.  

Moreover, practice shows that Ukrainians, despite all the difficulties, are ready to return home and see their future in Ukraine. According to a survey by the Rating sociological group, 85% of Ukrainians have such intentions.

Russian propaganda spread such messages to demoralize Ukrainians and cause panic, as well as to create the illusion that Ukrainians really left only for a better life. Read more about the messages of Russian disinformation related to Ukrainian refugees in the Detector Media investigation.

Russian propaganda in Lithuania is spreading a fake that due to the number of refugees in the country, the level of criminal offenses is growing. In general, the majority of refugees in Lithuania from Ukraine are criminals, representatives of organized crime. But this is fake.

Data on the number of crimes in Lithuania is provided by the Delfi publication: in 2021, the police recorded 42,525 cases, and in 2022 the number of criminal offenses increased to 45,710. At the same time, such fluctuations have nothing to do with war or refugees since in 2020, when there was neither war in Ukraine nor refugees in Lithuania, the Lithuanian police recorded even more crimes than in 2022 - 46,306 cases.

The article, which blamed Ukrainian refugees for the rise in crime, was published in the Russian-language edition of Baltnews, owned by the Russian state agency “MIA Siohodni” (MIA Today), which includes, among others, propaganda resources Sputnik, RT and Ukraina.ru.

Since the first days of the war, Russian propaganda has been trying to present Ukrainian refugees as criminals or terrorists, as a cultural and economic threat to the EU, in order to reduce support for Ukraine and Ukrainians. Read more about it in the Detector Media investigation.

This was stated by a Russian propagandist in one of the TV programs. According to her, from the territory of Ukraine, where the Russian army entered, orphans and children with disabilities were massively taken to Europe, who were without caregivers and disappeared without a trace in the hundreds. Like, Ukrainian children disappeared in Poland, in the UK, in the Netherlands, where in particular 170 Ukrainian teenagers disappeared in the spring and allegedly they most likely became victims of transplantologists or pedophiles. The propagandist refers to information from dutchnews.nl. 

StopFake journalists found a publication on dutchnews.nl, which became a primary source for Russian propagandists. In the publication of DutchNews, referring to the news of the Dutch TV channel NOS, they are not talking about the disappearance of 170 teenagers from Ukraine.

Russian propagandists significantly distorted the reports of the Dutch media, which discussed the issue of registering children from Ukraine who arrived in the country unaccompanied by their parents.

Some of the children received their guardians, many minors arrived in the country accompanied by distant relatives, adult sisters, brothers, etc. The publication says that human rights organizations insist on mandatory registration and provision of guardians for such children, since refugee children from Ukraine without registration and guardians can become victims of violence, abuse and exploitation. However, none of their reports refers to the mass disappearance of minors from Ukraine in the EU.

According to Russian propaganda, Ukraine does not protect children and condemns them to organ trafficking during the evacuation. Like, Russia is not an aggressor, it wants to save Ukrainian children from the crimes of the Ukrainian authorities and “evacuate” to the territory of Russia, where it is safer than in Ukraine and Europe. Thus, Russia justifies the war with Ukraine and the forced removal of Ukrainian children from the temporarily occupied territories in an unknown direction and without the possibility for relatives and guardians to get in touch with them.

Reports are circulating on social networks that allegedly the German Bundestag has urgently adopted a decision according to which Ukrainian refugees will receive a “welcoming” bonus of 500 euros at Caritas offices. Such assistance is allegedly funded by German taxes. The video gained thousands of views and caused discontent among the Germans. It is not true.

The fact-checkers of the Correctiv project asked for clarification from the office of Caritas and the Bundestag and received confirmation that the video was fake. The Caritas Association does not pay or offer any “welcoming” payments. The Bundestag did not make such a decision; moreover, there was not even such a project. The fact-checker also notes that the primary source of the video is an account from which false information about financial assistance to Ukrainian refugees was also previously shared.

Russian propaganda systematically spreads fakes to discredit Ukrainian refugees. In particular, fakes were circulated earlier in Germany, allegedly social services pay for the services of a hairdresser instead of Ukrainian refugees; as if Ukrainians go to Germany, draw up social benefits and immediately return home; and as if Ukrainians resell items received in Germany as humanitarian aid.

A video is circulating online in which an elderly woman allegedly complains to the Polish authorities that she was “robbed” by Ukrainian refugees, whom she settled in her apartment. In different versions of the story, either the woman’s children or the city authorities persuaded the 73-year-old Polish woman to give shelter to a Ukrainian family. It seems that the Ukrainians robbed a woman, smashed the apartment, ran into debt for housing and disappeared. The victim allegedly vainly demands compensation from the authorities. It is not true.

The video has nothing to do with Ukraine. StopFake fact-checkers found out that this video first appeared online on April 24, 2018. An elderly woman in the video complains that she was not provided with the promised services - the replacement of all equipment with the Internet and television. The video was probably filmed at the customer service office of the company "Vectra", which provides telecommunications services in Poland.

Kremlin information resources are distributing a publication stating that supposedly Ukrainian women who have gone abroad refuse to provide sexual services to African Americans and Asians. They seem to be showing racism.

According to StopFake, the publication referred to by the Russian media does not exist. A photo-edited screenshot of a Vision Times publication published on March 24 is being circulated online. It talks about the high risks of sexual exploitation of Ukrainian women who were forced to move to the EU after a full-scale Russian invasion. The propagandists changed the title of the article “War in Ukraine puts refugee women at risk of human trafficking and sex maniacs” to “Ukrainian refugee women involved in sex work refuse to sleep with blacks and people of color: the new face of European racism”. They also changed the author and the release date of the article.

Russia systematically discredits Ukrainian refugees. Read more about gender disinformation in the Detector Media study.

The Center for Counteracting Disinformation reports that three propaganda videos have already appeared in the media space of Europe in two weeks. They urge Ukrainians to return home in different languages. Allegedly, the authors of this video are citizens of European countries. Numerous errors indicate that the video is fake, including messed up languages, countries, flags, etc.

As the Center notes, the purpose of the video is to create a false image of Ukraine and its citizens in the European information space to discredit Ukraine's integration into the EU and NATO.

Such information was disseminated in Russian telegram channels. Like, the girlfriend of the Ukrainian refugee told in the video that after his death he became a donor for four Poles.

The woman in the video does not say what kind of person he was, because of which he fell into a coma, whether he was a refugee, and she does not say that his organs were sold. She simply confirmed that the Ukrainian became the donor of four people in Poland.

In Poland, organ transplantation is provided on the principle of tacit consent. Illegal transplantation of human organs in Poland is punishable by imprisonment for a period of 6 months to 5 years.

People professionally engaged in such activities face up to 10 years in prison. It is worth noting that in the spring in Poland, a Ukrainian, who had suffered from heart failure for a long time, had a donor heart transplanted. Then the National Movement "For Transplantation" noted that this was the first donor heart in Poland, which was transplanted by a Ukrainian woman. Earlier, StopFake refuted the fake that allegedly donated blood for the Armed Forces of Ukraine is already being taken from schoolchildren in the Cherkasy region, and that Ukrainians will be “allowed for organs” without their consent.

The Russian media are spreading another fake about Ukrainian refugees who were supposedly forcibly evicted from their home in Krakow. But, as StopFake found out, there is no evidence or mention of such an incident - except for the words of a witness referred to by the Russian media. They also distribute a video that seems to show that Ukrainian refugees had to be expelled from their apartment with a crane.

As fact-checkers write, a video about how the police got through the window in the center of Krakow appeared on the network on October 8, 2021, and there is no relation to the war in Ukraine. There is also no mention of any case of forced eviction of Ukrainians either in the local media, or in the police of Krakow, or in the Polish segment of social networks.

Such information is disseminated by Russian propaganda media. Reports say that over the past six months, the number of HIV-infected people has increased significantly in Poland. In the texts, the propagandists refer to the Polish Ministry of Health. Like, the ministry said that the situation with HIV in the country worsened because of Ukrainian refugees. Allegedly, it was they who brought the infection into the country and spread it there. However, this is fake. As StopFake fact-checkers write, in fact, the Ministry of Health of Poland explained that the number of recorded cases of the disease in the country could increase due to the arrival of Ukrainians, among whom there are also HIV-infected. They fit into the overall statistics, and are offered advice and treatment. The fact that in Poland the incidence of HIV infection has significantly increased due to the “influx of refugees” has not been claimed by anyone. Previously, the fake about Ukrainians spreading HIV concerned Estonia. Russian propaganda systematically spreads lies about Ukrainian refugees abroad in order to change public opinion both about the refugees themselves and about what is happening in Ukraine. Russian disinformation about Ukrainian refugees, in particular, is based on differences in people's values. For example, propaganda calls Ukrainians Nazis (in the sense of radical xenophobes) or claims that Ukrainians are not ready to work to provide for themselves, but only live off European taxes. Read more about the disinformation that Russian propaganda is spreading about Ukrainian refugees in the Detector Media investigation.In the texts, the propagandists refer to the Polish Ministry of Health. Like, the ministry said that the situation with HIV in the country worsened because of Ukrainian refugees. Allegedly, it was they who brought the infection into the country and spread it there. However, this is fake. As StopFake fact-checkers write, in fact, the Ministry of Health of Poland explained that the number of recorded cases of the disease in the country could increase due to the arrival of Ukrainians, among whom there are also HIV-infected. They fit into the overall statistics, and are offered advice and treatment. The fact that in Poland the incidence of HIV infection has significantly increased due to the “influx of refugees” has not been claimed by anyone. Previously, the fake about Ukrainians spreading HIV concerned Estonia. Russian propaganda systematically spreads lies about Ukrainian refugees abroad in order to change public opinion both about the refugees themselves and about what is happening in Ukraine. Russian disinformation about Ukrainian refugees, in particular, is based on differences in people's values. For example, propaganda calls Ukrainians Nazis (in the sense of radical xenophobes) or claims that Ukrainians are not ready to work to provide for themselves, but only live off European taxes. Read more about the disinformation that Russian propaganda is spreading about Ukrainian refugees in the Detector Media investigation.

This was reported on the website of the Belarusian Border Committee. It is not true. A fake about the mass migration of Ukrainians to Belarus was released by Stanislav Zharyn, authorized representative of the Polish government on protecting the information space of the country.

According to him, “the graph reflects the falsified number of Ukrainian refugees who left for Belarus. According to the information on the migration movement, more than 60,000 Ukrainians arrived in Belarus, including almost 40,000 who had to go through Poland”.

Zharyn noted that Belarusian propaganda hints that Ukrainians fleeing Russian aggression are seeking asylum in Belarus, perceiving this country as the safer one than the EU countries.

A photo of the famous football player Lionel Messi is circulating on social networks. In the photo, he allegedly holds a piece of paper with the text "Zelenskyi idi ..." (Zelenskyi go..). In the comments, they write that at the opening of the World Cup, Messi voiced his opinion on Ukrainian refugees: “I'm tired of watching this meaningless war! Zelenskyi, take your people and kick them out of Europe, we know the truth!” It is not true.

According to the fact-checkers of the MythDetector project, the photo of Lionel Messi has been altered by software. In the original photo, taken in 2014, Messi was holding a piece of paper with "Fuerza Luca" words written on it, when he was encouraging a 9-year-old fan who was suffering from cancer. Also, in open sources there are no calls by Messi to Volodymyr Zelenskyi.

Such information is spread on social networks and Russian propaganda media. Reports say that Ukrainian refugees in Germany have opened a second-hand shop there and are selling items that were given to them as humanitarian aid. As evidence, propagandists publish a video filmed by two women, whose voices are heard off-screen.

In the video, they discuss the opening of the Ukrainian second-hand store Sonnechko (The sun) “in the city center”, but do not specify which one. However, this is fake. Fact-checkers from StopFake drew attention to the information about the allegedly second-hand humanitarian aid. According to them, Ukrainians who have opened a second-hand store in Germany are selling things that they officially purchased in the UK. The clothes sold have nothing to do with the German government and any humanitarian and charitable organizations in this country.

However, Russian propaganda needs such a fake to once again discredit Ukrainian refugees and nourish the narrative that they are destroying Europe, cashing in on the assistance provided to them by the governments of partner countries.

The Russian media and social networks are spreading information that allegedly Italy has tightened its policy towards Ukrainian refugees. In support of this, a video from an Italian TV news story is being distributed about how the police massively evict Ukrainian refugees who refused to voluntarily leave the hotel. This is manipulation.

The video of the Italian TV channel tells about the situation with Ukrainian refugees, but it is taken out of context. They are not talking about any "harder conditions". Moreover, Ukrainian refugees in Italy were given separate housing instead of a hotel. That is why the authorities asked the Ukrainians to leave the hotel for separate apartments. However, some Ukrainians did not want to move to new housing, since it is located in another settlement. Because of the move, you need to look for work and school again, to change language courses and so on. Also, some refugees are being treated at a local hospital. That is, it was about the fact that Ukrainian refugees, for certain reasons, do not want to move to another city, and not move out of the hotel.

Fraudsters have created a website that pretends to be a resource that allegedly helps Ukrainians affected by the war. Under Facebook posts, bots leave comments like: "We created a project that directly connects donors with individual Ukrainians or Ukrainian refugees who apply for financial assistance" and add a link to a fraudulent site. Instead of helping, this resource actually collects user data.

As noted by the fact-checkers of the NotaYenota project, fraudulent sites basically do not have data about the project team, distribution of duties, responsibility and reporting. Also, there are usually no contacts, only the opportunity to leave your own ones. Although there is a mention of a Facebook page on the site, there is no link to it. There are no reviews from those who have already received help, although scammers usually add fake reviews.

In order to allegedly receive financial assistance, you need to create an account on the Binance cryptocurrency platform. Next, you need to shoot a video up to a minute and send your wallet number to Binance. It is surprising that scammers do not ask for passport details to make sure that it is Ukrainians who are applying for help. It is likely that in the future, scammers will use video recording to deceive facial identification technologies and access to personal data.

The Binance platform has indeed previously participated in a financial assistance project for refugees from Ukraine. However, only those living abroad could receive assistance. Now this project is closed, and it is impossible to get help.

Now the fraudulent site is blocked, but you may see what this resource looked like through the web archive. Despite the constant blocking of such fraudulent resources, new ones are constantly appearing.