France 24 credibility under fire after airing fake tweet

France 24 ’s Arabic channel has admitted it accidentally showed a fake message claiming to be from Morocco’s Foreign Minister, Nasser Bourita.

The mix-up happened during the political talk show Face à Face. A tweet appeared on screen saying Morocco had promised $1 billion to a group called the “Board of Peace” and would send police to help train security in Gaza.

The channel treated it as real news and even had Moroccan journalist Younès Meskine discuss it live.

The next day, France 24 Arabic admitted the tweet came from a fake account on X (formerly Twitter). They apologised and said their team hadn’t checked carefully enough before showing it. The segment has since been removed from the channel’s website.

The mistake shows how easy it is for fake posts on social media to spread and make it into mainstream news. Experts say it’s a warning for media to double-check sources, especially on big topics like money pledges or international diplomacy.

France 24 Arabic said it is reviewing its procedures to prevent this kind of error in the future.