Senior journalist at BBC Verify | verification, AI, disinformation, conspiracy theories, open source investigations, extremism | shayan.sardarizadeh@bbc.co.uk
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Multiple weapons experts have disputed a US claim that Iran may have been responsible for a deadly strike on the town of Lamerd on the first day of the Iran war, which killed 21 people.
Weapons experts say a US PrSM missile was likely used in the strike.
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gx…
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Shayan Sardarizadeh retweeted
EXCLUSIVE: The former bodyguard of Ismail Haniyeh, leader of Hamas, was given asylum and citizenship in the UK — then “plotted” huge foiled terror attack targeting Jews in Europe last year
Mr X had legal anonymity for 100 years: Sunday Times quashed this
thetimes.com/uk/crime/articl…
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One of the lawyers of the case for Iranian singer Parastoo Ahmadi and eight others sentenced to 74 lashes told me today:
“Quite apart from the fact that in our view holding the concert was not a crime at all, the court has imposed the heaviest punishment possible under the law…
The final verdict for Iranian singer Parastoo Ahmadi who held a concert without the mandatory hijab in Iran was issued today.
According to the verdict, she and eight others involved are sentenced to 74 lashes, a two-year ban on audiovisual activities, and a two-year travel ban.
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The final verdict for Iranian singer Parastoo Ahmadi who held a concert without the mandatory hijab in Iran was issued today.
According to the verdict, she and eight others involved are sentenced to 74 lashes, a two-year ban on audiovisual activities, and a two-year travel ban.
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This viral video claiming a $140m corruption case in the Ukrainian military is false and likely a new creation of the long-running Russian disinformation operation known as Storm-1516.
Although the fake video has the logo of a genuine Ukrainian news website called the New Voice of Ukraine, it is in fact a fabricated report that was never produced by the Ukrainian outlet.
To make this fake story even more believable, the operation has also created a fake web page made to look like the real website of the New Voice Ukraine, featuring the fabricated report (first screenshot).
On its genuine website, the New Voice of Ukraine has clarified that it never produced this $140m corruption report, and that the web page carrying its logo is entirely fake (second screenshot).
ALT Fake New Voice of Ukraine web page with the fabricated corruption report
ALT Real New Voice of Ukraine website debunking the false report
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Here's the fake $140m corruption video for reference as the original false post I quoted above has since been deleted
This just blew my mind…
In the Lioness season finale that just aired, the show strongly emphasized U.S. taxpayer money sent to Ukraine comes with virtually ZERO oversight.
Yesterday, $140 Million was uncovered during a raid on the home of Arsen Zhumadilov, Ex-Ukraine Defense Procurement Chief
Agents seized more than $140 million in U.S. cash packed into refrigerator cartons; one box carried a note reading “For the Servant of the People,”
To throw in some weirdness… as you may or may not know, Zelensky starred in a satirical show called “Servant of the People.”, where he played a school teacher that ultimately became the president.
rumble.com/v7fy8o8-140-milli…
📱 ReTWEET
📱 ReTRUTH
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Received a photo of the flight board at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport today. Some flights to Türkiye and Russia are still operating, while other than flights to the UAE and Oman, flights to Sulaymaniyah and Erbil have been cancelled today following US sanctions.
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This video is clearly AI-generated and most certainly doesn't show an Iranian missile destroying "an entire Israeli fleet" as the post claims.
🚨 Breaking: The Iranian hypersonic missile system destroyed the entire Israeli fleet. This clip clearly shows the scale of the destruction. 🚀💥🔥🇮🇷🇮🇱
Community note
No verified reports exist of an Iranian hypersonic missile destroying the entire Israeli fleet. No such event has been reported by news outlets covering the 2026 conflict. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_s… bbc.com/news/articles/… aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/…
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Apart from being bad at maths, your biggest problem is that you are clearly part of a network of fake accounts that post AI-generated images like this to farm engagement on social media.
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Shayan Sardarizadeh retweeted
Iran Civil Aviation Org has confirmed a Tehran to Dushanbe flight was unable to land at its destination because Turkmenistan did not grant permission for Iranian airlines to fly through its airspace. This comes following US sanctions on Iran’s aviation.
Mohammad Jahromi
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❗️Russian propaganda has intensified a disinformation campaign involving fabricated images purporting to show Israeli passports belonging to President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his wife, First Lady Olena Zelenska.
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A flight by Iranian airline Mahan Air landed in China today, despite US sanctions on Iran’s aviation.
China had said that it opposed US sanctions following a warning by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent against countries providing services to Iranian airlines.
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Iran state TV has confirmed that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US special envoy Steve Witkoff have met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
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Iran has officially confirmed that Iraq’s Baghdad and Oman’s Muscat are no longer willing to accept Iranian flights.
Iran Civil Aviation Org has said that it is working to redirect flights from Baghdad to Najaf. This follows recent US sanctions on Iran’s aviation industry.
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Once again, the official social media accounts of Iran's new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei have published an image of him that appears to have been manipulated with Google AI.
He has not been seen in public since being appointed Iran's head of state in March.
This image of Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, which has been widely published by Iranian media today and now appears on his new X account, appears to have been manipulated with AI.
Google's SynthID finds watermarks in it that indicate it has been edited using Google AI.
A cropped reverse image search finds what appears to be the original version of the photo published several years ago.
It shows Mojataba at a pro-government rally. The background and those surrounding him seem to have been edited and removed using AI.
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Shayan Sardarizadeh retweeted
The latest photo published by the official account of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been altered using Google Gemini.
The AI-altered image has also been published by Iranian outlets such as Tasnim as well.
The message of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution on the beginning of the new academic year will be published shortly.
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Shayan Sardarizadeh retweeted
Trump to the UN: "Do I annihilate the Islamic Republic, and do it quickly? Do I drive them into hell?"
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A BBC Verify investigation found that Apple Maps' censoring of Chinese Military and Government sites has included arbitrary detention sites in Xinjiang, including the prison where Ilham Tohti is detained.
Tech companies need a clear framework for obscuring imagery that balances security concerns with public interest. Here, Apple has clearly become a barrier to accountability.
I was honoured to lend some thoughts during this investigation, and I'm very glad it's been released. This is an unambiguous example of the need for a more structured approach.
Watch the investigation.
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Shayan Sardarizadeh retweeted
SCOOP: Looksmaxxer Clavicular Charged With Criminal Rape, Drugging
The manosphere celeb faces three counts stemming from an alleged encounter with a minor.
More from @willsommer
thebulwark.com/p/scoop-looks…
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Shayan Sardarizadeh retweeted
Noticed while on the "govmap" website (govmap.gov.il/?c=151360.08,6…) in the 2025 setting, a portion of the Northern Gaza strip has been uncensored, allowing us to see positions in high resolution.
I labelled 7 sites, where the IDF set up military outposts. Most which remain active.
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