An alleged front cover from the French satirical weekly magazine Charlie Hebdo is circulating online, mocking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the death of Pope Francis.

Kyiv

Russian forces have invaded Ukraine from land, air and sea with strikes causing widespread damage. Global leaders have condemned the move and imposed sanctions.

Ukraine Invasion

An alleged front cover of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, featuring a caricature of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy exploiting the death of Pope Francis, is circulating online. This image humorously portrays Zelenskyy attempting to acquire funds from the Vatican Bank, using Pope Francis as a puppet to request the transfer of money to Ukraine. Despite its controversial content, the cover is not genuine.

Verification through Charlie Hebdo's official channels reveals that the cover, claimed to be published on April 23, 2025, does not exist. The real edition from that date includes commentary on the Pope in a different context, depicting him as a rat alongside criticism of his policies. Many accounts spreading the false cover have ties to pro-Russian propaganda efforts, which aim to discredit Ukraine by presenting President Zelenskyy as a corrupt figure seeking financial gain from global governments.

Charlie Hebdo has warned about its imagery being used in pro-Russian propaganda against Ukraine. Euroverify, a fact-checking organization, has already debunked similar fabricated Charlie Hebdo covers targeting Zelenskyy. This incident is part of broader efforts by Russia to undermine support for Ukraine, although Western countries continue to provide significant financial and humanitarian assistance.



Fake Charlie Hebdo cover shows Zelenskyy exploiting Pope’s death

Fake Charlie Hebdo cover shows Zelensky exploiting Pope's death for cash. An alleged front cover from the French satirical weekly magazine Charlie Hebdo is circulating online, mocking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the death of Pope Francis. In the picture we can see a caricature of Zelensky holding up the body of the late pontiff at the Vatican Bank. Zelensky hiding behind the Bishop of Rome and animating his body like a puppet, says, it's me, Pope Francis, please transfer all of my money to Ukraine. The accounts sharing the front cover and commenting on it are critical of Zelensky, accusing him of demanding money from world governments and using Ukraine's defence against Russia's war as a pretext. But this is all false. Firstly, we can easily check whether the picture is authentic by visiting Charlie Hebdo's website. It's not anywhere to be found. It was supposedly published on the 23rd of April 2025, but checking Charlie Hebdo's list of recent publications shows us that the real 23rd of April edition looks completely different. It does deal with the Pope's death, but instead mockingly says his success will be truly close to the poor by depicting him as a rat. The rat says, what's more, he's reactionary, misogynistic and homophobic. Many of the accounts sharing the fake front cover are pro-Russian and regular disseminators of Kremlin propaganda that attempt to discredit Ukraine. Charlie Hebdo itself has previously issued a warning that pro-Russian actors are using its image to produce anti-Ukraine content. Euroverify has already debunked other instances of false Charlie Hebdo editions that disparage Zelensky. It's been widely shown that Russia is attempting to damage support for Ukraine by spreading propaganda that depicts Zelensky as a money-grabbing opportunist who's robbing taxpayers' funds. However, Western countries are providing legitimate financial and humanitarian support to Kiev and surveys consistently show that a strong majority of European citizens back this.

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Ukraine Invasion