Image of flooded car altered to include sticker critical of climate activist Greta Thunberg

More than 150 people died in Germany and Belgium after heavy rains flooded parts of Western Europe. But an image of a car submerged in water that has been shared on social media was doctored to include a sticker critical of Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who has attributed such extreme weather events to climate change. 

"In Germany, a denier provides a bit of amusement for Greta," reads one Facebook post sharing the picture of the BMW with a "f--- you Greta" sticker in the window.

This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

A reverse image search of the picture shows that the original, taken by photographer David Young, does not include that sticker. 

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stated on October 28, 2024 in in social media posts

"Nicki Minaj just endorsed Donald Trump for President.”

One Twitter user shared a photo of the car from a different angle and there’s no sticker.

"Deadly heatwaves, floods, storms, wildfires, droughts, crop failures… This is not ‘the new normal,’" Thunberg tweeted on July 15. "We’re at the very beginning of a climate and ecological emergency, and extreme weather events will only become more and more frequent. #FaceTheCimateEmergency." 

We rate this post False.