Lead Stories Korean - War

Fact Check: Hyundai Factory In Russia Is NOT Worth $1 Trillion

2023-12-28T17:28:00Z

Is Hyundai selling its factory in Russia, worth $1 trillion, for only 140,000 won (approx. $108)? No, that's not true: While the Hyundai factory in Russia is being sold, its actual value reportedly stands at 287.3 billion won (approx. $223 million).

The claim originated from a video (archived here) published on TikTok by @suzingmm on December 20, 2023. The caption in the video, translated from Korean into English by Lead Stories staff, reads:

1 trillion dollar factory for 140,000 won

To the number one salesperson (Yoon) Seok Yeol

This is your grade.

This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:

(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Fri Dec 22 14:38:34 2023 UTC)

According to a press release by Hyundai (archived here), on December 19, 2023, the Korean company approved the sale of the Russian plant. Several Korean news outlets, including Donga News (archived here), Chosun Ilbo (archived here), and Hankyoreh (archived here), reported on Hyundai Motor Company selling its Russian plant for 140,000 won. However, there is no evidence supporting the TikTok video's claim that the Russian plant is worth 1 trillion dollars.

The St. Petersburg plant, inactive since March 2022, incurred 1.13 trillion won (approx. $ 877 million) in losses due to the Russia-Ukraine War, as reported by Hankyoreh. Additionally, Chosun Ilbo notes Hyundai's intention to sell the General Motors plant in St. Petersburg, acquired for 50 billion won in 2020. It also reported that the book value of Hyundai Motor Company's Russian plant is approximately 410 billion won, while Donga News, along with Hankyoreh, reported a market value of 287.3 billion won (approx. $223 million).

Investopedia defines market value as the company's valuation based on the stock market, while book value represents the amount shareholders would receive after liquidating assets and settling liabilities. In instances where the market value falls below the book value, such as observed with Hyundai Motor Company's Russian plants, it signals a lack of confidence from the stock market in the company's perceived worth as stated in its financial books.

The sale at a loss of $219 million of Hyundai in Russia is in line with a broader trend observed among Western car companies selling at a loss and exiting the country.

Fact Check: Video Does NOT Show Celebration Of All Flights To Israel Selling Out

2023-12-27T13:38:00Z

Does a video on social media show soldiers celebrating the sold-out status of all flights to Israel, attributed to Jewish individuals traveling to Israel from various parts of the world? No, that's not true: The footage depicts soldiers chanting an old battle chant and was traced back on social media to October 10, 2023, shortly after Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

The claim originated from a video (archived here) published on TikTok by @alilang33 on October 10, 2023. The caption in the video (translated from Korean into English by Lead Stories staff) reads:

All flights to Israel are sold out.

Jews from all over the world are going to Israel.

This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:

(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Mon Dec 11 17:31:39 2023 UTC)

While the text does not directly refer to the soldiers' group in the video, pairing the text with the video leaves the implication that the soldiers are celerating sold-out flights to Israel.

According to numerous social media posts featuring the same scenario, found through Google Lens reverse image search on December 11, 2023, (archived here) by Lead Stories, the source of the original footage is the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Telegram channel.

However, a thorough search on the IDF's Telegram channel using the keywords "soldiers AND airport" (archived here) yielded no evidence of the video's presence in the channel. Despite scrolling through hundreds of updates posted during the timeframe when the IDF allegedly shared the video, it remained elusive.

Two Instagram accounts @northernprovisions and @conflictobserver also posted the video here (archived here) and here (archived here) with similar translations of a separate statement from the official IDF Telegram.

These are what the posts looked like on Instagram at the time of writing:

(Source: Instagram screenshot taken on Mon Dec 11 17:37:52 2023 UTC)

(Source: Instagram screenshot taken on Mon Dec 11 17:38:05 2023 UTC)

The same video was posted on Twitter (archived here) by @OGAride, and also by @havivrettiggur, a day before, in another video with captions that read:

The Golani Brigade in the 12th Battalion sing an old chant about the warrior hungering for the fight and returning safely home.

This is what the post looked like on Instagram at the time of writing:

(Source: Twitter screenshot taken on Mon Dec 11 17:32:27 2023 UTC)

There was another angle of the same event recorded and posted on Instagram (archived here) by @mybeautifullandofisrael, with a caption, that reads:

The energy is insane.

This is what the post looked like on Instagram at the time of writing:

(Source: Instagram screenshot taken on Mon Dec 11 17:35:46 2023 UTC)

Fact Check: Clip Does NOT Show Hamas And Israeli Soldiers Fighting

2023-11-30T19:52:46Z

Does a video show a Hamas soldier hitting an Israeli soldier who was allegedly shooting at children? No, that's not true: The footage stems from a video game and is not an authentic video of soldiers fighting.

The claim appeared in a video (archived here) where it was published by @beomeeya4 on Nov. 22, 2023 under the Korean title "어린이들한테 총쏘는 이스라엘군 패는 하마스?? 정신차려 이 미친 새끼야!" As translated by Lead Stories staff:

Hamas beating an Israeli soldier who was shooting at children?? Come to your senses, you crazy bastard!

This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:

(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Wed Nov 29 00:32:46 2023 UTC)

The TikTok clip shows two men in combat gear. One man hits the other individual, who then falls on the ground. The video does not show authentic footage of a Hamas and Israeli soldier, however.

The watermark @austin_but_yes leads to another TikTok video shared by the same username on Nov. 18, 2023. Some of the English text visible behind the Korean text in the first TikTok video is seen in the second video, which was shared as a meme about couples, as seen in the screenshot below:

(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Wed Nov 29 00:32:46 2023 UTC)

The moment the individual on the right gets hit (around the 0:05 timestamp), "+175 XP FINISHING MOVE" in yellow is visible on the screen, indicating the clip stems from a video game.

Some users in the comments pointed to the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III video game, developed by Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Sledgehammer Games and published by Activision. The game was released on Nov. 10, 2023.

A "finishing move" is a player mechanic in the Modern Warfare III game, as well as other games of the Call of Duty series.

The same "+175 XP FINISHING MOVE" in yellow can be seen in multiple user-uploaded gameplay footage on YouTube, all captioned as showing a "finishing move" in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III.

A spokesperson for Activision did not immediately respond to Lead Stories' request for comment.

Fact Check: Video Does NOT Show US Forces Deploying To Israel -- Montage Uses Unrelated, Out-Of-Date Photos

2023-10-31T18:57:48Z

Does a TikTok video document the deployment of United States armed forces to Israel in support of Israel's military response to Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack? No, that's not true: there was no reported deployment and the video is concocted from images four years out of date or from U.S. troop movements related to the U.S. war in Afghanistan.

The claim appeared in a video (archived here) where it was published by @771111jin on October 15, 2023 without title. It opened:

US Forces🇺🇸 on its way to help Israel🇮🇱~

(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Tue Oct 25 01:04:48 2023 UTC)

The video is built from two images, but none of them are related to ongoing Hamas-Israel conflict. The first image has been used as an Ebay product description image for costume patches since at least since 2019. The second image is a stock photo service picture published on various sites at least since 2021, related to Afghanistan.

Even though President Joe Biden said "The United States has Israel's back," the US did not announce direct intervention in the Hamas-Israel war. Instead, the US is closely cooperating with Israel and has relocated military assets in the region closer to Israel/Gaza.