FACT CHECK: No, The WHO Director Did Not Say That Vaccines Kill Children
A video on Instagram allegedly shows World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Tedros Ghebryesus, said vaccine boosters were used to “kill children.”
View this post on Instagram
Verdict: False
The director was correcting his pronunciation which led to the misinformation. A official transcript does not show the phrase “kill children.”
Fact Check:
White House Chief medical Advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci recently wared the U.S. was “certainly” still in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to CNBC. The WHO is working to identify pathogens that could potentially cause future pandemics or viral outbreaks, the organization reported.
The Instagram video purportedly shows Ghebreysus claiming vaccines are being used to kill children. The footage features Ghebreysus holding an address in front of a backdrop with WHO’s logo printed on it.
“WHAT DID HE SAY?” the caption reads. “SOME COUNTRIES ARE USING BOOSTERS TO KILL CHILDREN??” (RELATED: Does This Video Show Ted Cruz Saying He Has Documents That Would Implicate Adam Schiff?)
The caption is false. In the video, which was taken in December 2021 Ghabreysus stutters over the pronunciation of the word, ‘children.’ He quickly corrects it, which leads to the miscommunication.
A transcript of the panel shows that he was saying priority for certain countries should be to administer the boosters to the elder population, who are more susceptible to the disease. “Rather than, as we see, some countries are using to give boosters to children, which is not right.”
There is no credible news report suggesting Ghebreysus made such a statement. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has urged parents to vaccinate their children with updated COVID-19 booster shots and stay up-to-date on their vaccinations.
This is not the first time a video post has been the source of misinformation. Check Your Fact debunked a claim President Joe Biden wore a “Mao suit” to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.
