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Hegseth's announcement, Sinaloa Cartel & our new app

Plus: Rumor that bald eagles blocked Missouri highway is flight of fancy

Author

Izz LaMagdeleine
October 16, 2025

THURSDAY EDITION

Snopes Debunker

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Explaining Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's announcement about Qatari air force presence in Idaho

Last Friday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the United States Air Force would allow the government of Qatar to build a facility at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho.

The news set off a firestorm on social media, with both supporters and critics of Trump blasting the supposed decision. In the wake of the announcement, our readers wrote in asking for more information. We found the claim was a mixture of true and false information. Snopes reporter Jack Izzo has the details.

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Sinaloa Cartel reportedly used banner to threaten Americans in Mexico: What we know

Authorities in Mexico "categorically denied" the authenticity of the threats.

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Support Snopes With Our Monthly Membership

Snopes has been busy fact-checking political claims, including many about President Donald Trump's administration. But we look into claims on every topic, not just politics. For instance, one of our favorite fact checks that published this week, featured later in this newsletter, was about a flock of bald eagles allegedly blocking a Missouri highway. We need your help to keep doing this far-ranging work. By building our membership, we will be able to continue cutting straight to the facts on any subject our readers are interested in. We appreciate any support you can give.

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Did Patrick Mahomes say he'd boycott Super Bowl if Bad Bunny performs, choosing instead to honor Charlie Kirk?

According to the rumor, Mahomes said, "I'm an American — I'd rather be part of something All-American than the NFL's circus."

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Is Spotify running ICE recruitment ads? Here are the facts

The advertising "is part of a broad campaign the US government is running" across various platforms — not just Spotify — a spokesperson told us.

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Here's how to get Snopes' new app

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Staff Pick

An image shows a large flock of eagles on a highway. A large line of cars are shown on the highway. Some of the eagles are standing on the cars.

Rumor that bald eagles blocked Missouri highway is flight of fancy

In early October, a rumor spread online that a large flock of bald eagles landed on Highway 76 in Branson, Missouri, and ground traffic to a halt.

However, the story was for the birds. Reporter Anna Rascouët-Paz explains why.