Ukraine army’s Kursk operation triggered a disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting their successes at this part of the frontline. Pro-Russian Telegram channels spread the fake news that Coca-Cola transferred to Sumy region that borders Russian Kursk Oblast, mobile morgues because the ordinary ones are overcrowded with dead soldiers. Here’s how our fact-checking department debunked this fake. 

What happened? 

On August 6, 2024, Ukraine launched a ground offensive in the Kursk region to prevent, according to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a new Russian push into the Sumy and Kharkiv Oblasts. By September, Ukraine reportedly gained nearly 390 mi² (1000 km²) of Kursk ground. 

In September, Russia launched a large counteroffensive, deploying 59,000 troops in the Kursk region and pushing away Ukrainian forces from some areas of the front. According to Reuters, as of November 24, the zone of Ukrainian control decreased to 309 mi² (800 km²). 

On November 23, President Zelenskyy said that Russian President Putin ordered regaining control of the Kursk region before January 20, 2025. According to Zelenskyy, Putin chose this date not by chance. On this day, the winner of the US elections in 2024, Donald Trump, will take office and presumably try to force Ukraine and Russia to start negotiations. Therefore, Putin wants to prepare and show that Russia is in a position of strength.  

So, it’s unsurprising that pro-Russian Telegram channels started spreading a lot of fake news about Kursk’s direction. 

On November 15, Telegram channels “Medved” (Медведь), “Ukraina.ru” (Украина.ру), “Khersonskiy vestnik“(Херсонский вестник), “Kot Kosctyan” (Кот Костян) spread the information that The Coca-Cola transferred mobile morgues to the Sumy region as the new type of humanitarian aid. 

“After the mobile boiler houses, Coca-Cola supplies mobile morgues because usual ones are overcrowded,” posts in Telegram said

Over the next few days, some pro-Russian media resources, such as “Eadaily,” “OCH,” “ZOV Kherson,” and “ZOV Melitopol” shared this news. Pro-Russian users on X (Twitter), Facebook, and Vkontakte posted information about mobile morgues in Sumy, too. 

pro-Russian media started spreading a lot of fake news about Kursk's direction

Analysis 

Firstly, we check an official Coca-Cola subsidiary in Ukraine on social media. On November 4, Coca-Cola posted on its Instagram and Facebook that the company, in cooperation with the humanitarian organization Red Cross, provided an additional 65 mobile boiler houses to 45 that they had already transferred to Ukraine. The Red Cross posted the same information on its Facebook page. 

On November 4, Coca-Cola posted on its Instagram and Facebook that the company, in cooperation with the humanitarian organization Red Cross, provided an additional 65 mobile boiler houses to 45 that they had already transferred to Ukraine.

Next, we compared the photos from Coca-Cola’s Facebook post with those shared by pro-Russian resources. It’s visible that authors of the post edited the original image by changing the sign “mobile boiler houses” (Мобільна котельня) to “mobile morgues.” 

Next, we compared the photos from Coca-Cola's Facebook post with those shared by pro-Russian resources. It's visible that authors of the post edited the original image by changing the sign "mobile boiler houses" (Мобільна котельня) to "mobile morgues." 

Finally, we turned to the Ukrainian Coca-Cola press office, and they answered that the company donates only mobile boiler houses. The company noted that accurate information about Coca-Cola’s activities is only available on its official social media. 

“This information that Coca-Cola provides mobile morgues is fake,” reads the official company’s response. 

Conclusion: Fake

Author: Anna Ormanzhi