Rumors started circulating in March 2015 that Russian President Vladimir Putin had died:
Shocking footage from Putin's secret funeral. #CB8=#<5@ pic.twitter.com/RGuki3IxY9
— Kevin Rothrock (@KevinRothrock) March 11, 2015
The theory, which was first floated on Russian social media, was based on the fact that Putin had not made a live television appearance for several days after meeting with Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi on
While it's unclear where Putin has been, the Kremlin assured the public on
Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, asked by Reuters if the president was in good health, replied "yes".
"He has meetings all the time," he said by telephone. "He has meetings today, tomorrow. I don't know which ones we will make public."
The image shown in the Putin "secret funeral" tweet displayed above is also a fake, one crafted from a blending of a picture of former Soviet leader Josef Stalin's casket with a news photo of the current Russian president fishing:
On 13 March 2015, the Kremlin released a series of photographs said to show Putin meeting with the head of the Supreme Court in Moscow, and state broadcaster Russia 24 also aired video footage of the meeting.
Putin's death wasn't the only explanation for his absence to circulate in
Last updated: 14 March 2015