From manipulated images to out-of-context photos, false claims that Donald Trump is seriously ill — or even dead — have swirled online, with the misinformation persisting even after the US president publicly rejected it on Tuesday.

At a White House press conference, Trump dismissed social media rumours about his health as “fake news,” following the 79-year-old’s noticeable absence from public appearances and press events last week.

Since last Friday, there were around 104,000 mentions of the hashtag “Trump dead” on the Elon Musk-owned platform X, generating a cumulative 35.3 million views, according to an analysis from the misinformation watchdog NewsGuard.

Some social media users cited online maps purportedly showing road closures near Maryland’s Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre as evidence that Trump was being treated for a serious ailment at the facility.

But there were no credible reports of road closures around the medical facility.

Other social media users shared an image of an ambulance parked outside the White House, claiming it was taken last month and citing it as evidence of a health crisis involving Trump.

It was actually an old photo posted by a journalist on X in April 2023 — while Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, was still in office, according to NewsGuard.

Some users claiming that Trump was dead shared an out-of-context image of the White House flag flying at half-staff, a traditional gesture used to honour the death of a prominent official.

In reality, Trump had issued a proclamation last week ordering flags at the White House, military posts, and naval stations across the country to be lowered in honour of the victims of a school shooting in Minneapolis.

Some users also posted a zoomed-in image of Trump’s face, claiming it showed a deep line above his eye that indicated a recent stroke.

But NewsGuard found that the original image was out of focus and showed no signs of a line over Trump’s eye. The image used in the false posts was digitally enhanced using an AI tool.

The misinformation — which appeared to originate from liberal anti-Trump accounts on X, Bluesky, and Instagram — persisted even after Trump stated on Truth Social over the weekend: “NEVER FELT BETTER IN MY LIFE.”

The falsehoods continued to circulate following Trump’s press conference on Tuesday, where he publicly dismissed the health rumours.

Shortly after the conference, one Bluesky account falsely claimed that the “White House just announced” the president was dead.

The falsehoods highlight how facts are increasingly under assault on a misinformation-filled internet landscape, an issue exacerbated by public distrust of institutions and traditional media.

The health of US presidents has always been closely watched, but with the White House seeing its two oldest ever occupants since 2017, the scrutiny is now heavier than ever.

Trump — the oldest man ever to be elected US president — has alleged that Democrats covered up the mental and physical decline of Biden, who was 82 when he left office in January.

Biden’s health was a key issue in the 2024 election, and the then-president was forced to drop his campaign for a second term after a disastrous debate performance against Trump.

AFP

•Laurent Freixe

Nestlé has sacked its global Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Laurent Freixe, for an office romantic relationship with a subordinate, which breached the company’s code of business conduct.

Nestle said that it had appointed veteran insider Philipp Navratil, who had headed the Nespresso coffee unit, as Freixe’s successor with immediate effect.

In a statement, Nestle said Freixe’s departure on Monday, September 1, 2025, follows an investigation overseen by Chairman Paul Bulcke and Lead Independent Director Pablo Isla into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate, which breached the company’s code of business conduct.

“This was a necessary decision. Nestle’s values and governance are strong foundations of our company. I thank Laurent for his years of service,” Bulcke said in a statement.

According to Reuters , the shock departure threatens more volatility for Nestle amid a tough consumer environment and the disruptive United States trade tariffs.

The Päijät-Häme district court in Finland has sentenced Simon Ekpa, pro-Biafra agitator, to six years in prison for terrorism offences.

In a ruling delivered on Monday, the court found Ekpa guilty of inciting terrorism and participating in the activities of a terrorist group.

According to a Finnish newspaper, the court said Ekpa had used his “significant social media following” to stoke tensions in Nigeria’s south-east region between August 2021 and November 2024.

In a unanimous ruling, the three-member panel of judges also stated that Ekpa was an influential member of a militant separatist movement whose goal was to actualise the carving out of a Biafra state from Nigeria.

The district court also noted that Ekpa had supplied certain groups with weapons, explosives, and ammunition “through his network of contacts in the region, and he was also found to have encouraged his followers on social media platform X to commit crimes in Nigeria”.

The court also convicted Ekpa of aggravated tax fraud and violating the provisions of the Attorneys Act.