Overview

• German officials and independent fact-checkers have publicly refuted allegations that Chancellor Friedrich Merz killed a polar bear mother and two cubs during a Canadian hunting trip.
• The disinformation was hosted on torontojournal.ca, a fake news platform set up in June on a Malaysian server using stolen Toronto Star journalist profiles to feign legitimacy.
• An English-language video featuring manipulated images of Merz with a rifle and fabricated witness statements accompanied the article to lend the hoax credibility.
• Digital forensics linked the operation to Storm-1516, the Kremlin-linked propaganda group behind previous wildlife-hunting fabrications targeting Western leaders.
• Investigators continue to probe the network of pro-Russian accounts that amplified the story on social media platforms, including posts from figures like Alina Lipp.