Did a Chinese tabloid publish a front-page story about Bashar al-Assad’s fall?

A photo of what appears to be a front page of a newspaper emerged in Chinese-language social media posts that claim it shows coverage of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad by China’s state-run tabloid, the Global Times.

But the claim is false. The photo has been digitally doctored. The original photo shows a Global Times report about former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein published in 2003.

The photo was shared online about Syria on Dec. 7, citing a statement from the Syrian Presidential Palace denying claims that Assad had left Damascus.

The phrase “Why Bashar is not alarmed” was not used in the article’s title or body.

Translated by Shen Ke. Edited by Taejun Kang.

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