What was claimed
World Economic Forum boss Klaus Schwab has been hospitalised or arrested.
Our verdict
False. The claims are baseless rumours spread by clickbait disinformation websites.
World Economic Forum (WEF) boss Klaus Schwab is being targeted by conspiracy theorists, who claim he has been either hospitalised or arrested.
The claims are false. Neither has any basis in reality. A WEF spokesman told AAP FactCheck the claims were disinformation. Hoax websites that publish deceptive clickbait stories started the rumours.
The unfounded claims about Dr Schwab’s hospitalisation appear to originate from an April 14 article on a dubious website called Weekly Crier.
They went viral after quickly spreading on social media, as seen here, here, here, here, here and here.
The Weekly Crier’s domain record shows the low-quality, advertising-heavy site was registered in January 2024. Its owner’s name is not publicly disclosed.
According to the article, Dr Schwab was admitted to hospital on April 13.
It says news of his alleged hospitalisation "has sent ripples across the global community, prompting an outpouring of reactions from various quarters".
The article provides no evidence for its claim and does not cite any sources.
A website called RawRealNews.com subsequently claimed on April 15 that Dr Schwab was arrested in Switzerland by a US Army special operations team known as Delta Force.
It said hospitalisation rumours were a "deep state cover story" for his arrest.
However, RawRealNews.com states that its website contains "humor, parody, and satire".
Its flippant tone is apparent from the article's text, which says Delta Force detained the 86-year-old WEF boss “following a deadly firefight” that killed more than 20 security guards supposedly patrolling Dr Schwab’s property.
In March 2024, RealRawNews.com published a similar fake news article which claimed Marines had arrested former senior US diplomat Victoria Nuland.
AAP FactCheck found no mention of either Dr Schwab’s alleged hospitalisation or arrest in any credible news source.
WEF spokesman Yann Zopf confirmed the claims were unfounded.
“These claims are entirely baseless. Many organisations and individuals are seeing a rise in mis- and disinformation, including the World Economic Forum,” Mr Zopf told AAP FactCheck.
Dr Schwab and the WEF are regularly targets for conspiracy theorists and misinformation spreaders, as seen here, here, here, here, here and here.
The WEF is a non-profit foundation that facilitates discussions and meetings for global political and business leaders.
Dr Schwab, a German engineer and economist, founded the organisation in 1971 and serves as its executive chairman.
False claims about his supposed April 2024 hospitalisation or arrest have also been debunked here, here and here.
The Verdict
Claims that World Economic Forum chairman Klaus Schwab was either hospitalised or arrested in April 2024 are false.
The claims were created by hoax websites that regularly publish clickbait fake news articles. A WEF spokesman told AAP FactCheck the claims were baseless.
False - The claim is inaccurate.
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