After Ukraine said it had destroyed more than 40 Russian aircraft in Russia, Kyiv reported a record-breaking number of Russian missile and drone attacks on Sunday. 

Social media users were quick to share images and footage allegedly showing the recent escalation ahead of potential truce talks in Turkey. DW's Fact check team takes a look at some of the viral posts.

Claim: This video allegedly shows a Russian Iskinder missile hitting targets in Ukraine. "It's Just beginning," a social media user writes in this post on X with 2 million views.

DW Fact check: False

While this video does indeed show Russia attacking Ukraine, the footage is old. An reverse image search takes us to this video from early July 2024 when Russia launched a massive strike on a children's hospital in Kyiv.

Claim: Russia has allegedly placed its nuclear weapons on high alert, claims this post with close to 5 million views (at the time of publishing), sharing a video of what appears to be nuclear weapons being transported in Russia. Another post with more than 2 million views (at the time of publishing) alleges the US warned European allies that Russia was "preparing a 'disproportionate response' to today's attack on air bases."

DW Fact check: Unproven

While it's unclear whether US intelligence warned Europe about Russia lashing out disproportionately, the video shared by these accounts does not show recent movement of military equipment.

The footage was originally published by Russia's Ministry of Defense on the instant messaging service Telegram on February 27, 2024: The intercontinental ballistic missile autonomous mobile launchers seen there were on a 400-kilometer (249-mile) route ahead of a military parade in Moscow, the post reads.

Similar videos of weapons being transported have been widely shared in the past to illustrate Russia getting ready for a potential nuclear launch. These videos have also been debunked by other fact checking organizations  in the past. 

Claim: A viral post on Xallegedly shows "[f]irst images of the truck driver at Irkutsk airbase" — it includes a photo of what's made to look like an ID card from Ukraine.

DW Fact check: False

While the ID card of "Semen Hydenko" itself is suspicious — take a closer look at the bottom which just shows a line of zeros  — a reverse image search reveals that the ID card has been used regularly in the context of disinformation in the past as well.

It has circulated at least from 2022 onwards to claim, for instance, that the man pictured was allegedly responsible for the Kerch Bridge blast or an assassination attempt on US President Donald Trump in 2024, during the election campaign.

A reverse image search of the man pictured reveals his identity: It is US comedian Sam Hyde, who has been linked to various alt-right communities. He's been the subject of a number of fact checks in the past. 

Anna Schild contributed reporting.

Edited by: Rachel Baig