BEIRUT: Old images, fiction films and even video games have all been used to spread fake news stories in war-torn Syria — creating all the more work for a media collective debunking them.
Protests broke out against Syria’s regime in 2011 and then spun into violent conflict. All along, there has been a continuous stream of fabricated “news,” helped by the rapid-fire reach of social media.
To bring clarity and truth to an increasingly complex war, 32-year-old activist and journalist Ahmad Primo founded Verify-sy, an electronic platform that monitors and fact-checks stories about the conflict. “As reporters, journalists, and activists, we’ve got a responsibility,” Primo tells AFP.
“What’s happening today will be written down as history, and we don’t want it to be fake history.”
Years ago, Primo took part in protests in the northern city of Aleppo and worked at a website that published news about the popular movement.
After being arrested three times by regime forces, he moved to opposition-held territory in northern Syria before eventually leaving for Turkey.
“I was arrested for publishing the truth about what’s happening (in regime territory), and when I moved to opposition areas, I noticed they tamper with the truth, too,” says Primo.
“My reaction was that I can’t be quiet until we finish with these oppressors — and there are many oppressors now in Syria.”
Verify-sy, whose volunteers receive some funding from European nations, works across a range of platforms to shoot down fake news.
On Twitter, it posts screenshots of misleading new stories stamped with a thick red “X” and placed alongside correct versions branded with a green check mark.
“We consider any picture or news story that gets widely published to be something we should monitor and verify,” says Primo.
Primo’s team relies on various tools to verify news. They use traditional methods, like checking with their reporters and sources on the ground.
But they also use Google’s reverse image search to determine whether a picture portrayed as capturing one event actually dates back to an entirely different event.
Sometimes, members of the team are able to spot old photographs and video footage straightaway.
To help them in their work, the group has launched a Facebook page allowing users to post suspected phonies for them to check.
Activists debunk war-torn Syria’s fake news
Activists debunk war-torn Syria’s fake news
- On Twitter, it posts screenshots of misleading new stories stamped with a thick red “X” and placed alongside correct versions branded with a green check mark
- Sometimes, members of the team are able to spot old photographs and video footage straightaway
WEF report spotlights real-world AI adoption across industries
DUBAI: A new report by the World Economic Forum, released Monday, highlights companies across more than 30 countries and 20 industries that are using artificial intelligence to deliver real-world impact.
Developed in partnership with Accenture, “Proof over Promise: Insights on Real-World AI Adoption from 2025 MINDS Organizations” draws on insights from two cohorts of MINDS (Meaningful, Intelligent, Novel, Deployable Solutions), a WEF initiative focused on AI solutions that have moved beyond pilot phases to deliver measurable performance gains.
As part of its AI Global Alliance, the WEF launched the MINDS program in 2025, announcing its first cohort that year and a second cohort this week. Cohorts are selected through an evaluation process led by the WEF’s Impact Council — an independent group of experts — with applications open to public- and private-sector organizations across industries.
The report found a widening gap between organizations that have successfully scaled AI and those still struggling, while underscoring how this divide can be bridged through real-world case studies.
Based on these case studies and interviews with selected MINDS organizations, the report identified five key insights distinguishing successful AI adopters from others.
It found that leading organizations are moving away from isolated, tactical uses of AI and instead embedding it as a strategic, enterprise-wide capability.
The second insight centers on people, with AI increasingly designed to complement human expertise through closer collaboration, rather than replace it.
The other insights focus on the systems needed to scale AI effectively, including strengthening data foundations and strategic data sources, as well as moving away from fragmented technologies toward unified AI platforms.
Lastly, the report underscores the need for responsible AI, with organizations strengthening governance, safeguards and human oversight as automated decision-making becomes more widespread.
Stephan Mergenthaler, managing director and chief technology officer at the WEF, said: “AI offers extraordinary potential, yet many organizations remain unsure about how to realize it.
“The selected use cases show what is possible when ambition is translated into operational transformation and our new report provides a practical guide to help others follow the path these leaders have set.”
Among the examples cited in the report is a pilot led by the Saudi Ministry of Health in partnership with AmplifAI, which used AI-enabled thermal imaging to support early detection of diabetic foot conditions.
The initiative reduced clinician time by up to 90 percent, cut treatment costs by as much as 80 percent, and delivered a 10 time increase in screening capacity. Following clinical trials, the solution has been approved by regulatory authorities in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain.
The report also points to work by Fujitsu, which deployed AI across its supply chain to improve inventory management. The rollout helped cut inventory-related costs by $15 million, reduce excess stock by $20 million and halve operational headcount.
In India, Tech Mahindra scaled multilingual large language models capable of handling 3.8 million monthly queries with 92 percent accuracy, enabling more inclusive access to digital services across markets in the Global South.
“Trusted, advanced AI can transform businesses, but it requires organizing data and processes to achieve the best of technology and — this is key — it also requires human ingenuity to maximize returns on AI investments,” said Manish Sharma, chief strategy and services officer at Accenture.
