Truth : He Is Not An American Man Harassing Chinese Female Tourists!
This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS created and propagated by the Chinese 50 Cent Army (wumao, 五毛), and pro-CCP netizens.
After investigating this video, here are the facts that I was able to ascertain…
Fact #1 : Video Was Recorded In Cyprus
First, let me point out that this video wasn’t recorded in the United States. It was recorded at the Nissi Bay Beach in Cyprus.
In fact, I geolocated the precise location to a few metres south of the Petra Snack Bar, at the Nissi Beach Resort.
On the left is a screenshot at 0:15 of the video clip; and on the right is a picture of the Petra Snack Bar taken in October 2019 by Matthias Schelker, at almost the same position!
You can see the same white Petra Snack Bar signboard, and stairs leading up to the cafe; as well as the red Life Guard shack.
Fact #2 : Man In Video Is Not American
The man in the video is not American. Even though he asked the ladies to “go from this country“, he’s not even a citizen of Cyprus!
He’s actually a Turkish citizen called Taner Tolga Tarlacı, who is living in Cyprus because he was sentenced to 18-20 years of jail in Turkey for a variety of small crimes.
Allegedly, he learned about the arrest warrant on a ferry from Cyprus to Turkey, and literally jumped off the ship and swam back to Cyprus to avoid arrest!
Fact #3 : Taner Creates Controversial Videos
Taner is actually a minor Turkish celebrity, after participating in Turkish Got Talent and Survivor Turkey (Survivor Türkiye). Since then, he has been creating controversial or crazy videos… and even porn!
He is notable for bizarre antics, so much so, he allegedly got his own TV show cancelled when he chased his guests with a fire extinguisher on its first episode!
So it is possible he recorded the video to “go viral”, which is why he made sure he figured prominently in it.
Fact #4 : The Ladies May Not Even Be Chinese!
When Taner told the Asian ladies to leave the beach, you can hear the lady who was standing up say, “Yeah, okay” in what sounds like an American accent.
In any case, there is no way to know if the ladies are Chinese citizens as alleged. They could be Japanese or Korean, or ethnic Chinese people from other countries.
Fact #5 : The Video Was Allegedly Taken In 2020
According to several netizens, the video was allegedly taken early in the COVID-19 pandemic, circa 2020.
I brought this up because people are claiming that this is a new video in various websites, social media and even WhatsApp.
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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.
He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.
Did Russian forces just capture US general Roger Cloutier in the besieged Azovstal steel plant?!
Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!
Claim : Russia Captured US General Roger Cloutier In Azovstal!
People are claiming that Russia just captured US general Roger L. Cloutier at the besieged Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, Ukraine.
This is sometimes mentioned as part of the Azovstal NATO headquarters story, or separately like these examples :
The rumours going around that a US Major General Roger L. Cloutier has been captured by Russian army at Azovstal in Mariupol. It would be within the Russians’ right to execute this officer as nothing more than a common criminal. Not kidding. Legally by all laws.
The Russian army captured the US Major General Roger L. Cloutier Jr., the US Africa Command HQ Chief of Staff in the besieged Ukrainian Azov camp in Mariupol. The Pentagon wanted to contact Putin.
Truth : Russia Did NOT Capture US General Roger Cloutier At All!
The truth is – this is yet another example of FAKE NEWS created and shared by pro-Russia activists, as well as the Chinese 50 Cent Army (wumao, 五毛).
Fact #1 : Roger Cloutier Is A Lieutenant General
First of all, Roger L. Cloutier holds the rank of a Lieutenant General (O-9), and is a three-star general officer.
He is not a Major General (O-8), which is a two-star general officer rank.
Fact #2 : Roger Cloutier Heads NATO Allied Land Command
Secondly, Lt. General Cloutier is not the Chief of Staff for US Africa Command.
He has been the Command of the NATO Allied Land Command (LANDCOM) in Izmir, Turkey, for the last 1.5 years – since August 2020.
Fact #3 : General Cloutier Appeared On 14 April 2022
Two weeks after these claims started circulating amongst pro-Russian and pro-CCP (Chinese Communist Party) groups, Lt. General Cloutier posted a video on 14 April 2022.
It showed him greeting the commander of the NATO Multinational Corps (South East), Major General Dragoş-Dumitru Iacob at the LANDCOM headquarters.
Fact #4 : NATO Confirmed That It’s Fake News
NATO has described the viral news as “completely fake news”, and confirmed that :
LTG Cloutier has NOT been captured and is currently with his command in Izmir.
LANDCOM Deputy Public Affairs Officer, Major Brian Andries also confirmed that his boss is still very much in Turkey :
These rumors are completely false. Our commander is currently commanding NATO Allied Land Command in Izmir, Turkey, and has not been to Ukraine since the Land Staff Talks we conducted in July of 2021. While NATO nations are sending financial and military aid to Ukraine, no NATO soldiers or leaders are deployed to the country.
Fact #5 : There Are No NATO Forces In Ukraine
Allied Land Command told BBC reporter Alistair Coleman that “there are no NATO forces or leaders in Ukraine in any capacity“.
Major Brian Andries from LANDCOM also pointed out that that Cloutier was last in Ukraine in July 2021, and photos from that visit was used to “prove” the fake news :
Photos from this event have been used as proof as recent visit to Ukraine which never occurred. No NATO forces are in Ukraine, let alone a United States Army three-star general.
Variants of this FAKE NEWS are now being shared in pro-Russia and pro-CCP websites.
Please help us FIGHT FAKE NEWS by sharing this fact check article out!
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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.
He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.
Does NATO have a secret headquarters under the Azovstal plant in Ukraine, where they produce biological weapons?!
Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!
Claim : Secret NATO Headquarters Under Azovstal Exposed!
People are sharing schematics of a secret NATO headquarters under the Azovstal plant, where they claim biological weapons are being produced in Ukraine.
It was actively promoted by Russian political scientist, Sergei Markov, Russia Today, and several Italian TV channels including PiazzaPulita on La7 and Rai 1, as well as the Chinese 50 Cent Army (wumao, 五毛).
Online posts often included this long story, which is rather long, so feel free to skip to the next section for the facts.
What is the secret of Azovstal? In Mariupel there is a secret building with a depth of 30 m underground and on multiple floors.
This building is located under the Azovstal plant, which includes the secret headquarters of the North Atlantic, with the code number (pit_404). For the production of biological weapons, within a highly fortified and protected system, in which 240 foreign scientists of different nationalities are present.
In addition to a number of NATO officers from America…
Germany, Canada, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Sweden, Austria, Poland, Greece, and soldiers from the French Fifth Corps.
They are protected by the Rinat Azov battalion, which is the most dangerous battalion in the Nazi army. They are all professional killers, snipers and … criminals who cannot leave Ukraine, as they are wanted in most countries of the world for many crimes, and they are 3000 fighters.
This headquarters is run by the Metabiota Corporation of Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, and his direct partner, Vladimir Zelensky.
French intelligence tried to evacuate those in special operations, but they failed many times, which led to the release of French intelligence chief Eric Vida from his position as a result of this chain failure.
They assigned the task to the American General Roger Cloute … so his helicopter was shot down before taking off and he was arrested, as he was under follow-up from the GRU in the General Staff and the Russian Foreign Intelligence.
Macron tried a lot to communicate with Putin to secure a safe passage for them, but they were refused and..
Putin’s insistence on bringing them alive or dead. We have a sequel after their arrest…
Truth : There Is No Secret NATO Headquarters Under Azovstal!
This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS created and shared by not only pro-Russia activists, but also the Chinese 50 Cent Army (wumao, 五毛).
Here are the facts behind the two viral schematics, and why this is just fake news…
Fact #1 : Azovstal Plant Complex Was Created By Soviet Union
The massive Azovstal plant complex was created in the 1930s, as a priority construction project by the Soviet Union.
They spent 292 million rubles to create the massive steel plant complex that would be capable of producing 4 million tons of pig iron a year.
That target was partly demanded by Soviet leaders to beat the Americans whose Gary steel plant was “only” capable of smelting 3 million tons a year.
Fact #2 : Azovstal Bunkers Were Built By Soviet Union
The fake news creators used this infographic from the Daily Mail UK as “evidence” that the Azovstal tunnels were created by NATO.
Ironically, the infographic specifically pointed out that the bunkers and tunnels under the Azovstal plant complex were built by the Soviet Union, to “safeguard the steel plant’s 40,000 workers in the event of a nuclear attack”.
These bunkers and tunnels were built many decades earlier by the Soviet Union, not NATO.
Credit : Daily Mail UK
Fact #3 : No Evidence Of NATO Facility Called PIT-404
There is no evidence of any NATO facility called PIT-404 ever existed.
The fabulous fact checkers at MythDetector.ge did a great job of tracing the origin of this PIT-404 claim to an April 4, 2022 post in the Russian forum, strategium.ru.
In that post, a user called sojnyshkotanya claimed that there is a bio-laboratory under Azovstal, and mentioned PIT several times in reference to Azovstal.
sojnyshkotanya also noted that the best route for the evacuation of Western officials from that facility is from Mariupol to Samsun – a distance of 404 miles.
That was the most likely origin of the name and story of the mysterious PIT-404 underground NATO facility that produces biological weapons.
Fact #4 : PIT-404 Schematic Was From A Board Game!
The image that people are sharing as the PIT-404 NATO facility schematic was actually taken from a board game called Blackout: Journey into Darkness by Richard T. Boardwater.
This board game was pitched on Kickstarter in 2016 as a game for 1-4 people who try to survive in a post-apocalyptic world dominated by monsters, where humans now have to survive in bunkers.
You can see its bunker graphic under the Beneath The Surface section of their Kickstarter pitch), with the following description :
Beneath the crumbling cities, a vast network of subterranean pathways exists. These vast underground chambers are vital to the Brood’s survival. With these tunnels, The Brood emerged to feed on mankind after the great fall. It is these same tunnels they continue to thrive unmolested. Many of the nomadic Unification kill teams have attempted to cleanse these zones but all have been unsuccessful, for the network beneath the surface is vast.
Doesn’t sound like a NATO facility, does it?
The game ultimately didn’t achieve its fundraising goal and was not greenlit, but its bunker design has now found everlasting fame as the (non-existent) PIT-404 NATO facility in the fevered dreams of Russian and Chinese conspiracy theorists.
Fact #5 : PiazzaPulita Admitted Their Mistake
On 22 April 2022, PiazzaPulita admitted that they were wrong to claim that the Blackout bunker schematic was of the Azovstal steel factory bunkers.
As far as I can tell, Sergei Markov – the Russian political scientist and former Putin advisor – has yet to admit his mistake…
Fact #6 : Metabiota Is Not Owned By Hunter Biden Or Volodymyr Zelenskyy
The fake story claimed that “this headquarters is run by the Metabiota Corporation of Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, and his direct partner, Volodymyr Zelensky“. That’s utter nonsense.
Metabiota is a private company owned by 21 venture capitalist companies, one of which is Rosemont Seneca Technology Partners – a private equity firm partly owned by Hunter Biden.
So no, Metabiota is not owned by Hunter Biden. Neither is it owned by Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The fact that the fake news creators got the name Volodymyr wrong, suggests that they are not Russian. Quite likely, this fake news was created by the Chinese 50 Cent Army (wumao, 五毛).
Fact #7 : French General Eric Vidaud Failed To Predict Russian Invasion
French General Eric Vidaud was fired at the end of March 2022 for failing to predict Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – in sharp contrast with other Western Allies.
Vidaud, who led the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DRM) was asked to step down, after an internal defence ministry investigation criticised “insufficient briefings” and “failure to master the issues”.
The fact that the fake news creators got the name Vidaud wrong, suggests that they are not Russian. Quite likely, this fake news was created by the Chinese 50 Cent Army (wumao, 五毛).
Left : Gen. Eric Vidaud | Right : Lt. Gen. Roger L. Cloutier
Fact #8 : US General Roger Cloutier Jr. Was Not Captured
US Lieutenant General Roger L. Cloutier Jr. was not shot down in his helicopter, and captured by Russian forces in Mariupol.
A NATO spokesperson, Brian Andries said that Cloutier is currently commanding NATO Allied Land Command in Izmir, Turkey and has not been to Ukraine since July 2021.
The fact that the fake news creators got the name Cloutier wrong, suggests that they are not Russian. Quite likely, this fake news was created by the Chinese 50 Cent Army (wumao, 五毛).
Variants of this FAKE NEWS are now being shared in pro-Russia and pro-CCP websites.
Please help us FIGHT FAKE NEWS by sharing this fact check article out!
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Support my work through a bank transfer / PayPal / credit card!
Name : Adrian Wong Bank Transfer : CIMB 7064555917 (Swift Code : CIBBMYKL)
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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.
He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.
Did 10 countries just cancel all COVID-19 tests, quarantine procedures and vaccinations?
Take a look at the viral message, and find out what the facts really are!
Claim : 10 Countries Cancelled All COVID-19 Tests + Vaccinations!
This is the first part of a viral message, that appears to be combined from two different viral messages. Read part two.
It claims that 10 countries just cancelled all COVID-19 tests, quarantine procedures and vaccinations, because they now consider COVID-19 to be “just a seasonal flu”.
The following countries announced the cancellation of all quarantine procedures, Corona tests, and compulsory vaccination, and considering Corona just a seasonal flu:
1) Turkey 🇹🇷 2) Brazil 🇧🇷 3) Britain 🇬🇧 4) Sweden 🇸🇪 5) Spain 🇪🇸 6) Czech Republic 🇨🇿 7) Mexico 🇲🇽 8) El Salvador 🇸🇻 9) Japan 🇯🇵 10) Singapore 🇸🇬
Truth : Those Countries Did NOT Cancel COVID-19 Tests / Vaccinations!
This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS circulating on Facebook and WhatsApp, and here are the reasons why…
Fact #1 : None Of Those Countries Cancelled COVID-19 Tests
None of the ten countries mentioned in the viral message cancelled any requirement to test for COVID-19.
Turkey : Travellers must submit negative PCR test taken 72 hours before arrival. Proof of vaccination or negative PCR test within last 48 hours is required to enter certain venues in Turkey. Symptomatic people in Turkey are tested for COVID-19.
Brazil : Travellers must test negative for COVID-19 within 24 hours (RTK) or 72 hours (PCR) before boarding.
Britain : Travellers who are not fully vaccinated must take a COVID-19 test within 2 days before departure, or on arrival in England. Negative COVID-19 tests are still required to enter certain venues in Wales and Scotland.
Sweden : Travellers must be fully-vaccinated or show a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours before arrival in Sweden.
Spain : Travellers must be fully-vaccinated or show a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours (PCR) or 48 hours (RAT) before arrival.
Czech Republic : Travellers must present a negative COVID-19 test, irrespective of vaccination status.
Mexico : Travellers were never required to undergo a COVID-19 test.
El Salvador : Travellers were no longer required to present a negative COVID-19 test since 17 November 2021,
Japan : Travellers (including citizens) must submit a negative test result within 72 hours prior to departure.
Singapore : Travellers must submit a negative test result within 48 hours prior to departure.
Fact #2 : None Of Those Countries Cancelled COVID-19 Quarantine
Turkey : Unvaccinated travellers must undergo mandatory quarantine for up to 10 days. COVID-19 positive individuals and unvaccinated close contacts must quarantine for 7 days.
Brazil : Unvaccinated travellers must undergo mandatory quarantine for 14 days. COVID-19 positive individuals must quarantine for at least 7 days.
Britain : Travellers who are not fully-vaccinated must quarantine for 10 days, until 11 February 2022. After that, only those who test positive on arrival in England must quarantine. COVID-19 positive individuals must quarantine for 10 days, including close contacts who are not fully-vaccinated.
Sweden : COVID-19 positive individuals must quarantine at home for at least five days.
Spain : COVID-19 positive individuals must quarantine at home for at least seven days.
Czech Republic : Close contacts must quarantine for 5 days. COVID-19 positive individuals must quarantine for at least 5 days.
Mexico : Travellers were never required to undergo a mandatory quarantine. COVID-19 positive individuals are required to quarantine for 5-10 days.
El Salvador : El Salvador can place municipalities under special quarantine with little to no prior notice.
Japan : Even with a negative test, all travellers from countries where Omicron variant is dominant must self-quarantine for 7 days. Close contacts must quarantine for 7 days,
Singapore : Travellers must quarantine until they receive a negative result for their On-Arrival COVID-19 PCR test. COVID-19 positive individuals must quarantine for 10 days.
Fact #3 : None Of Those Countries Cancelled COVID-19 Vaccination
COVID-19 vaccinations are still continuing in all ten countries mentioned in the fake message.
In fact, most of those countries have pretty high vaccination rates :
Turkey : 62.1% fully vaccinated
Brazil : 70.4% fully vaccinated
United Kingdom : 71.9% fully vaccinated
Sweden ; 72.9% fully vaccinated
Spain : 80.8% fully vaccinated
Czech Republic : 63.3% fully vaccinated
Mexico : 59.7% fully vaccinated
El Salvador : 64.8% fully vaccinated
Japan : 79.2% fully vaccinated
Singapore : 83.6% fully vaccinated
Fact #4 : None Of Those Countries Considers COVID-19 A Seasonal Flu
While many health experts predict COVID-19 could be “endemic”, that is still not certain.
If COVID-19 becomes endemic, that means SARS-CoV-2 is is impossible to completely eradicate, and is here to stay… forever.
However, it does not mean they consider COVID-19 to be nothing more than “just a seasonal flu”.
For one thing, COVID-19 is far more deadly than the seasonal flu, even though the flu is caused by multiple viruses.
The WHO also considers COVID-19 to be a pandemic, warning that it is too early to treat it as an endemic disease.
“We still have a huge amount of uncertainty and a virus that is evolving quite quickly, imposing new challenges. We are certainly not at the point where we are able to call it endemic.”
No matter how you slice or dice it, COVID-19 is currently not close to being “just a seasonal flu”.
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Support my work through a bank transfer / PayPal / credit card!
Name : Adrian Wong Bank Transfer : CIMB 7064555917 (Swift Code : CIBBMYKL)
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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.
He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.
Please note that the new travel ban by Malaysia on 23 countries with high COVID-19 cases is FAKE NEWS!
Here is what you need to know!
Claim : Malaysia Travel Ban On 23 Countries!
On 7 January 2022, people started sharing a screenshot of a travel advisory by the Embassy of Malaysia in Berlin, Germany.
Please skip to the next section for the facts…
Embassy of Malaysia, Berlin
TRAVEL ADVISORY ENTRY RESTRICTIONS ON FOREIGN TRAVELERS TO MALAYSIA
Effective from 08 January 2022, the Government of Malaysia is imposing travel restrictions into Malaysia on foreign travellers who are travelling from countries that have recorded over 150,000 COVID-19 cases as listed below:
United States of America
The United Kingdom
Brazil
Bangladesh
India
Saudi Arabia
Russia
Pakistan
Peru
France
Colombia
Turkey
South Africa
Italy
Mexico
Germany
Spain
Iraq
Argentina
The Philippines
Chile
Indonesia
Iran
The entry restrictions include travellers who are citizens of/holders of long-term passes of the countries listed above who are residing in or travelling from those countries.
The latest decision is part of continuing efforts by the Government of Malaysia to contain the spread of COVID-19 and in view of the recent increase in the number of imported COVID-19 cases detected at international points of entry to Malaysia among travellers coming from the listed countries. The restriction is a temporary measure and will be reviewed regularly.
This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS being created and circulated on WhatsApp and social media, and here are the facts…
Fact #1 : This Travel Advisory Was Forged
This travel advisory was forged from the original September 2020 travel advisory.
Back then, the government of Malaysia announced the temporary travel ban on those 23 countries, that would start on 7 September 2021.
The original travel advisory was edited, with the new date added to make it look like it’s new. But it was a very poor photo-editing job.
If you look carefully, the 08 January 2022, date is not only in bold , but of a different type of font and a much larger size.
Note : Here is the screenshot that went viral. I added a FAKE overlay to prevent further abuse.
Fact #2 : Embassy of Malaysia In Berlin Confirms It Is Fake
The Embassy of Berlin in Malaysia confirmed that the viral travel advisory is FAKE.
ANNOUNCEMENT
The Embassy of Malaysia, Berlin would like to warn the public that there has been a fake news being circulated regarding travel advisory by the Embassy of Malaysia, Berlin on entry restriction on foreign travelers [sic] to Malaysia.
We condemn the actions of those who maliciously spread fake news which can have an adverse effect and concern to the public. The public is advice [sic] to validate the source before circulating any news.
Thank you.
Embassy of Malaysia, Berlin
7 January 2022
Fact #3 : Malaysia Currently Has No Travel Ban
There is currently no travel ban in Malaysia.
In fact, Malaysia just ended a temporary travel ban of 8 countries, on 27 December 2021, due to the risk of Omicron variant.
There is currently only a list of 18 countries that are considered high-risk due to the Omicron variant.
Australia
The United States of America
The United Kingdom
Norway
France
Denmark
Canada
Nigeria
India
Saudi Arabia
South Africa
Botswana
Eswatini
Lesotho
Mozambique
Namibia
Zimbabwe
Malawi
Travellers from those 18 high-risk countries can still travel to Malaysia, but they must comply with the following additional restrictions :
Negative COVID-19 PCR test within 2 days before departure
COVID-19 PCR test on arrival in Malaysia
Wear a digital tracker on arrival in Malaysia
Mandatory quarantine of 7 days or 10 days, depending on vaccination status, either at home or at a quarantine centre, subject to approval.
Additional PCR test on Day 5 (for 7-day quarantine) or Day 8 (for 10-day quarantine).
Risk assessment on the last day of quarantine, which may be extended if you are symptomatic.
You will only be free from the quarantine on Day 8 or Day 11, if there is no quarantine extension and the Day 5 or Day 8 PCR test is negative.
Travellers from the United Kingdom have the additional requirement of conducting daily RTK-Ag tests during their quarantine, which must be reported in MySejahtera.
Now that you know the truth, please SHARE this fact check with your family and friends, so they won’t get fooled by it!
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Support my work through a bank transfer / PayPal / credit card!
Name : Adrian Wong Bank Transfer : CIMB 7064555917 (Swift Code : CIBBMYKL)
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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.
He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.
