Arson and the Australian Wildfires

13 Articles

Featured on Snopes today: Conspiracy theorists claim nearly 200 Australians were arrested for deliberately setting bushfires, Americans report receiving texts ordering them to sign up for a military draft, and more!

Snopes Staff

Published 8 January 2020

Climate scientists and fire experts are saying climate change played a role in the severity of the wildfire crisis now afflicting parts of Australia, an assertion that hasn’t gone down well with global warming deniers.

The conspiracy theory website Infowars published an article pooh-poohing any climate change connection and blaming the conflagration instead on a wave of arson across Australia. The website went so far as to claim that nearly 200 people were arrested for “deliberately starting bushfires,” a statistic that doesn’t match information put out by the regional police.

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Were ‘Nearly 200’ People Arrested for Deliberately Starting Australia Bushfires? Misinformation spread wildly as bushfires devastated Australia in late 2019 and early 2020.

Fact Check

False

Was This Koala Rescued From a Bushfire in Australia? As wildfires raged in Australia in January 2020, a photograph from a previous blaze went...

Fact Check

Outdated

Did US Rep. Tlaib Announce Pledge of Allegiance Was Banned in Michigan? A routine review of content labeled satire.

Fact Check

Labeled Satire

Is US Army Sending Texts About a Military Draft? The military has been an all-volunteer force since 1973.

Fact Check

False

Did Mike Pompeo Say ‘We Will Continue to Fight These Battles Until the Rapture’? White evangelical Christians are a powerful force in the Republican Party.

Fact Check

Correct Attribution

Does This Map Show Human Trafficking Hotspots in U.S.? The three most common types of sex trafficking are escort services, residential (locations), and outdoor...

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Mixture

Is This a Real Calvin and Hobbes Cartoon? Comic strips are not infrequently altered to replace their original dialogue with political messages.

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True

Does This Photo Show Wedding Rings Taken from Holocaust Victims? “Every wedding ring here represents a home broken and a human murdered by the Germans."

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True

Did Pat Robertson Say ‘Nobody Is Shooting Up Churches’? A meme claims the televangelist once remarked that Jews could avoid slaughter if they became...

Fact Check

False

Case of 2 Missing Kids Grows to Include Deaths, Cult Rumors Confusion is growing around a series of mysterious deaths and the disappearances of a 7-year-old...

AP News

Prince Harry and Meghan to ‘Step Back’ as Senior UK Royals In a statement, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said they hope to "carve out...

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Gunman Gets Life Term in ‘Fast and Furious’ Border Killing The 2010 killing exposed the controversial federal gun operation.

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Trump Says Iran Appears to be ‘Standing Down’ After Strike The president indicated he would not retaliate militarily for Iran's missile strike on two Iraqi...

AP News