Has the Republic of Croatia pledged to send five hundred million euros in aid to Ukraine in October 2023? No, that's not true: Croatia will help Ukraine with five million euros for demining purposes, in addition to the five million euros already donated for the same purpose, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković announced at the opening of the International Donor Conference…

Is the army going to guard fences around Zagreb's historical center, under renovation plans that draw on a "15-minute city" urban planning concept? No, that's not true: The concept, in which people can access most of their daily needs or services within a 15-minute walk, bike or public transport ride, is mentioned in Zagreb's 2021 urban renovation plan in relation…

Is the Croatian government implementing a population replacement policy by forcing the Croatian population away and importing foreigners into the country? No, that's not true: The decrease of the resident population and the increase of the foreign population stem from different factors. The claim appeared in a video on TikTok by Nikola Grmoja, a Croatian member of parliament and the…

Will all Balkan immigrants who have been granted asylum have to leave Germany? No, that's not true: Germany is introducing a tougher asylum policy, as the German Cabinet approved on October 25, 2023, a legislative proposal that would ease the deportation of rejected asylum-seekers. Immigrants who successfully obtained asylum, though, would not be deported, and the draft legislation still has…

Do Ukrainian refugees in Croatia have all their expenses paid, receive free villas on the Adriatic coast, free pensions and health insurance, and receive a monthly allowance of 2000 euros per month? No, that's not true: Refugees from Ukraine under temporary protection in Croatia, can access free care through public health care institutions, have open access to the Croatian labor…

Will migrants have the right to vote in the Republic of Croatia? No, that's not true: Currently, in Croatia, foreign citizens who wish to obtain the right to vote must have a permanent or temporary residence status in the country and they have to apply for registration in the voters' register three months before the elections they wish to vote…

Did Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić declare war on Kosovo and order Serbian soldiers to go there? No, that's not true: Lead Stories did not find a single report of Vučić announcing war on Kosovo or sending Serbia's national army to attack Kosovo. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok on May 28, 2023. The text overlay (translated…

Did the European Union direct Croatia to import two hundred thousand workers from the Middle East into the country? No, that's not true: No such order was issued from the European Union's headquarters in Belgium. The claim misleadingly referred to a Croatian news article on the country's credit rating which reported that Croatia would need to attract two hundred thousand…

Did a CNN correspondent and a Croatian Radiotelevision journalist try to mislead viewers while reporting on the Hamas-Israel conflict? No, that's not true: A video purporting to show American journalist Clarissa Ward taking instructions in her earpiece has been manipulated while the Croatian journalist was reporting in an area where Israel issued rocket warnings. The claim reappeared as a video…

Did American actor George Clooney make a video, in Serbian, advising on the value of choosing peace instead of engaging in unnecessary conflict? No, that's not true: The video was made using AI tools. The claim appeared in a video (archived here), on TikTok on September 19, 2023, with the following hashtags in the caption (translated by Lead Stories from…