WaPo Fact Checker Glenn Kessler wants to make sure you know that the Taliban didn't ackshually hang a man from a helicopter (like they'd ever do that!)

You may have seen footage circulating on social media or on TV, purportedly showing a man who had been hanged by the Taliban from a helicopter.

Taliban hanging someone from a helicopter in Kandahar pic.twitter.com/TwCkVzUrnL

— Old Holborn® (@Holbornlolz) August 30, 2021

As it turns out, that description wasn’t accurate. And Washington Post Fact Checker Glenn Kessler was determined to make sure everyone knew it:

Here's how things get twisted on the Internet. You know that image of the Taliban supposedly hanging someone from a BlackHawk helicopter, tweeted all over the place? Just made-up. Not that the video is sourced to "FJ" — @natsecjeff1 But that's not what his original video said… pic.twitter.com/Swb0FIGmXR

— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) August 31, 2021

The original video was posted with "I swear I don't know what's going on here." @Natsecjeff — ie, counterterrorism expert Faran Jeffrey — said he checked later and it is "apparently a TB militant hanging from a rope with a TB flag." So please delete your tweets and retweets. pic.twitter.com/WS5xlSX4jd

— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) August 31, 2021

The person who falsely tweeted this was a hanging, @Holbornlolz, is apparently not a counterterrorism expert or a national security expert. He bills himself as "Comedian. Breaking News. Satire. Humour. Politics."

— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) August 31, 2021

We can certainly appreciate Kessler wanting to get to the bottom of this. After all, misinformation is pernicious and can be quite toxic and it should be exposed for what it is.

That said, we’re having a difficult time mustering as much outrage as Glenn is about this, because, well, you know, it’s the Taliban we’re dealing with. Is it really so farfetched that they’d hang someone from a helicopter? Or throw someone off a roof? Or rape a ten-year-old girl and her mother at the same time? Or decapitate an entire family because the father allegedly smiled at an American once?

You see where we’re going with this.

So we're on day three of this I guess. https://t.co/BjOtjF503n

— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) September 1, 2021

The press is super invested in "Actually the Taliban isn't hanging people from Helicopters. That's not who they are" narrative and it's kind of nuts.

— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) September 1, 2021

It’s completely nuts. But sadly, infuriatingly predictable.

"Taliban helicopters also flew over the victory parade in Kandahar today."

See, we told you they weren't hanging people. Checkmate cons. @GlennKesslerWP https://t.co/QgjnzkGTo7

— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) September 1, 2021

Thanks for thoroughly checking this. It’s really quite absurd and unreasonable for anyone to ever think the Taliban would be so heinous.

Speaking of comedians… did you see what the Taliban did to one last week? https://t.co/CqmrSz3WAS

— Kate Hyde (@KateHydeNY) September 1, 2021

https://twitter.com/Mellecon/status/1432761136210919426

https://twitter.com/Mellecon/status/1432760859261128704

Joe Biden’s misinformation and lies over just the past eight months could keep Glenn Kessler busy for three lifetimes. Instead, he’s helping Biden bury those lies while splitting hairs over the Taliban’s well documented brutality and violence.

instead of fact checking rando internet videos could you maybe fact check the things the Presidents told us would happen in Afghanistan vs what really happened?

— Dr. Ricardo Harambe (@Richard_Harambe) August 31, 2021

Kessler hot on the case. It’s not like we have a president who said he wouldn’t leave people behind and then did. Better to fact-check retweets and simp for the Taliban. https://t.co/EVE6AsUs6a

— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) August 31, 2021

Here’s a fact for you, Glenn: the Taliban have already done plenty of terrible things and will do a lot more than hang people from helicopters thanks to Joe Biden.

No need to check that one. It gets zero Pinocchios.