Olga Robinson
@olgar.bsky.social
23K followers 870 following 31 posts
Assistant Editor, BBC Verify and BBC Monitoring
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Reposted by Olga Robinson
richib.bsky.social
Couple of Verify live page posts today.

How we used satellite imagery, streetview, reverse searches, shadows, sanctions lists, weather, and the speed of sound to confirm strikes in Poltava, Ukraine: www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c2...

And in Yelets, Russia: www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c2...
BBC Verify Live: Ukraine city strike caught on dashcam, and Mali militants attack town
Latest updates from the BBC's specialists in fact-checking, verifying video and tackling disinformation.
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
jospang.bsky.social
The AI war!
Or: a new dimension in the spreading of #disinformation.

@matt-murphy96.bsky.social, @olgar.bsky.social and @shayan86.bsky.social report on BBC Verify that an increasing number of AI-generated footage is circulating online, apparently depicting scenes from #Iran - #Israel conflict.
Israel-Iran conflict unleashes wave of AI disinformation
Fake AI videos relating to the conflict have gained over 100 million views online, BBC Verify finds.
www.bbc.com
olgar.bsky.social
BBC Verify has analysed dozens of fakes - a lot of them AI generated - related to the Iran-Israel conflict in the last week.
We’ve found that the top three fakes have amassed over 100m views across multiple platforms. @shayan86.bsky.social @matt-murphy96.bsky.social www.bbc.com/news/article...
Israel-Iran conflict unleashes wave of AI disinformation
Fake AI videos relating to the conflict have gained over 100 million views online, BBC Verify finds.
www.bbc.com
Reposted by Olga Robinson
richib.bsky.social
1/ THREAD

Quick one on geolocation among the Kashmir strikes overnight.

Here was the first video we verified late yesterday. It's from Kotli, later confirmed by the Indian Army as a site it targeted.

Let me take you through how to check what's real and not.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw...
Tensions escalate as Pakistan vows response to Indian strikes after Pahalgam killings - latest
Pakistan says the air strikes by India killed 26 as Delhi says 15 were killed by Pakistan shelling.
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
richib.bsky.social
/1 THREAD (Call it OSint if you want.)

How we know where rebels trained in Syria, and how you can too. With a little bit of asking why Assad / Putin didn’t.

Or, let me break down this video, it’s five months’ work in 65 seconds.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...
How did rebels train to overthrow the President of Syria?
The BBC identifies videos of sites and training showing how the rebels formed a single force.
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
shayan86.bsky.social
A fake video masquerading as a report by The Sun has gone viral. It baselessly claims Olena Zelenska has bought Princess Diana's "revenge dress" from Harry and Meghan for $2.9m.

The clip is likely the work of a known Russian disinformation operation that mimics news outlets to disparage Ukraine.
Juanita Broaddrick @atensnut

Dear American taxpayers.  You just purchased Zelensky’s wife a Princess Diana dress for $2.9 million.   Despicable!!

Readers added context they thought people might want to know

Diana sold the dress at her Christie’s auction in 1997.   It was purchased by a Scottish couple for £39,098.  They are still the rightful owners, and the dress is currently on display at the Museum of Style in Newbridge, County Kildare
Reposted by Olga Robinson
richib.bsky.social
1/ THREAD

What can we tell about images of a strike on a bus in Marhanets, Ukraine earlier this week?

On Wednesday, Serhiy Lysak, governor of Dnipropetrovsk, posted these images, saying nine people on the way to work at a local mining company were killed in the incident: t.me/dnipropetrov...
Screengrab of collage of four photos posted on Telegram by Serhiy Lysak showing aftermath of strike on a bus near Marhanets, Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine, morning of 23 April 2025.
olgar.bsky.social
On today’s Ukrainecast, we listened to a powerful testimony from Vitalii who got caught up in Russian strikes on Kyiv and answered some more of the listeners’ questions about Trump, peace talks and Ukrainian drones. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
Ukrainecast - Q&A: Trump's peace plan, Crimea and the latest Kyiv attack - BBC Sounds
The team answer listener questions in another pivotal week
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
chrisjeavans.bsky.social
BBC Verify investigation by @olgar.bsky.social , me, Olga Malchevska and Matt Murphy into exactly how thousands of homes in Mariupol are being seized and transferred to Russians. Ukrainians can try to get their homes back but there’s a catch…
www.bbc.co.uk/news/resourc...
Russia seizing thousands of homes in occupied Mariupol - BBC News
To save their homes, Ukrainians face a dangerous return through Russia, and pressure to take a Russian passport.
www.bbc.co.uk
olgar.bsky.social
Russian authorities are systematically seizing thousands of homes from Ukrainian residents of Mariupol.

BBC Verify has analysed dozens of official documents published since July 2024 that show at least 5,700 homes have been identified for seizure. www.bbc.co.uk/news/resourc...
Russia seizing thousands of homes in occupied Mariupol - BBC News
To save their homes, Ukrainians face a dangerous return through Russia, and pressure to take a Russian passport.
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
richib.bsky.social
1/ THREAD -
Several articles by the BBC and other news orgs have covered many angles of the killing of 15 PRCS workers by Israeli troops near Rafah, Gaza, on 23 March this year, such as this piece: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

My contribution to what we’ve been able to say explained below.
Survivor challenges Israeli account of attack on Gaza ambulances
Palestinian paramedic Munther Abed rejects Israel's assertion that the vehicles approached troops with their lights off.
www.bbc.co.uk
olgar.bsky.social
It was great to join Vitaly Shevchenko of Ukrainecast and Lyse Doucet earlier today on BBC 5Live to answer some of the listeners’ questions about the peace talks and the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine.
Presented by Leila Nathoo. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
Ukrainecast - Your Questions Answered: Witkoff meets Putin, Chinese soldiers and Russia’s economy - BBC Sounds
The Ukrainecast team answer listener questions on 5Live
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
jameswaterhouse.bsky.social
Ukraine's military says the intensity of Russian front line assaults has increased by 30% in the past week.

In the Sumy region, 47 attacks were reported.

Still no evidence suggesting that Moscow has given up on its goal of taking as much of Ukraine as possible.
Reposted by Olga Robinson
Reposted by Olga Robinson
richib.bsky.social
1/ THREAD

How we know what we know about what happened around Dar al-Arqam school, al Tuffah, Gaza, yesterday afternoon and evening. (Call it OSint if you like.)

This will include unpacking two images in our main story: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Gaza: Israeli strike on school kills 27, health ministry says
Palestinian authorities say children were among the dead, while Israel says it hit a Hamas command-and-control centre.
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
jameswaterhouse.bsky.social
At least 14 people, including five children, are dead after a Russian missile hit this block in the southern city of Kryvyi Rih, say officials there.
olgar.bsky.social
Could Putin ever agree to peace and would an election help Zelensky consolidate power?

These are some of the questions Vitaly Shevchenko, FrankGardner and I tried to answer on today’s Ukrainecast collaboration with Global News Podcast. Presented by Oliver Conway www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
Ukrainecast - Your Questions Answered: Putin's endgame, Ukrainian elections and North Koreans - BBC Sounds
Ukrainecast and the Global News Podcast answer listener questions
www.bbc.co.uk
Reposted by Olga Robinson
richib.bsky.social
1/ THREAD

What do @paulybrown.bsky.social and I know about two strikes in Gaza today, which have reportedly killed at least 31 people? And how do we know? And how can you open-source investigate it, too?

First: Khan Yunis, where Palestinian media say a family home was struck overnight.
A screengrab of seven photos published on Telegram by Palestine Daily Newspaper, showing destruction in central Khan Yunis, 2 April 2025
olgar.bsky.social
Real videos of someone dressed as Pikachu at protests in Turkey are being shared, but THIS image is NOT authentic.

Experts from GetReal Labs have analysed the photo and found “strong evidence of synthesis”.

One of the telltale signs is the misspelled text on the police van. @shayan86.bsky.social