Original article (in BCS) was published on 23/2/2024; Author: Amar Karađuz
Claims that Ukrainian authorities planned to assassinate the French President to blame Russia and provoke a reaction in the West originated from a “deepfake” video.
On February 15, 2024, the web portal Borba (.info) published an article about a supposed report by France 24 television, which alleged that preparations were underway in Ukraine for the assassination of French President Emmanuel Macron.
“France 24 shocks the world: In Kyiv, preparations for Macron’s assassination are complete!”
The article claims that the Ukrainian authorities were behind the preparations for the assassination, leading Macron to cancel his planned trip to Ukraine.
According to the report from France 24, the Ukrainian authorities had been preparing to assassinate French President Emmanuel Macron during his ultimately aborted visit to Kyiv. This alarming development reportedly led to the abrupt cancellation of his trip.
The article also mentions that French intelligence services intercepted communications between the organizers and perpetrators of the planned assassination. These individuals allegedly intended to attribute the act to “Russian special services” with the aim of provoking a reaction from the West.
This text was shared on the VKontakte profile of the web portal Borba (.info).
What are the facts?
The fact-checking web portal Lead Stories analyzed the claims regarding a planned assassination of President Macron in Ukraine. According to Lead Stories, the claims about the assassination began circulating after the French publication Challenges reported on February 11, 2024, that the French presidential administration had announced the postponement of Macron’s trip to Ukraine, scheduled for February 13-14, 2024, citing “security reasons.”
The administration did not provide further details on the “security reasons.” Additionally, two unnamed French officials confirmed to the newspaper Politico that the visit was postponed, without elaborating on the reasons.
However, the claims about an assassination plot against the French president in Ukraine have been debunked. They were traced back to a deepfake video that fabricated a report from France 24 television, presenting alleged details of the assassination plan.
France 24 television refuted the video’s authenticity in an article published on February 15, 2024.
A viral video supposedly shows an extract from one of FRANCE 24’s news bulletins on its French-language channel. In it, the presenter announces that French President Emmanuel Macron has postponed his trip to Ukraine, because the French secret services had intercepted an assassination attempt against him. But the news is false, and the video a deepfake (…).
The article further includes a video that provides a detailed analysis of how the news segment was manipulated. It reveals that the footage was originally of a news broadcast by host Julien Fanciulli on Monday, February 12. Yet, the voiceover and the on-screen graphics were altered.
We assess the claims regarding the assassination plot against French President Emmanuel Macron, as reported by the web portal Borba (.info) to be fake news.