Old photo falsely shared as China's Xi 'having stroke' at party meeting

"Chinese dictator Xi Jinping suffered a stroke at the Third Plenum of the Communist Party of China," read a simplified Chinese X post shared on July 18. 

An important meeting of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the "Third Plenum" -- which focused on major economic policies -- was held that week in Beijing.

The photo shows Xi leaning forward with his eyes closed.

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Screenshot of the false X post, captured on July 25, 2024

The 71-year-old's health is regularly subject to speculation online. The photo quickly spread on social media around the world -- including in the United States, Indonesia and the Netherlands -- as the meeting wrapped up.

However, a reverse image search on Google found the photo was in fact taken four months earlier at the annual National People's Congress (NPC) plenary session.

Xi and thousands of delegates from around the country attended the key parliamentary meeting.

The photo was published by The Associated Press news agency and captioned: "Chinese President Xi Jinping, rear, reacts after drinking from a cup at the closing session of the National People's Congress held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Monday, March 11, 2024" (archived link). 

'Collapsed'

Another photo shared online showed two women looking under Xi's desk at the same meeting, with the suggestion they were medics attending to him after he "collapsed in pain".

However, the photo in fact showed staff preparing the Chinese leader's desk ahead of the NPC plenary meeting's closing session.

The photo -- which was taken by AFP photographer Greg Baker -- is captioned in AFP's archives: "Attendants prepare Chinese President Xi Jinping's desk before the closing session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 11, 2024."

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Screenshot of the false Facebook post, captured on July 25, 2024

AFP footage shows Xi leaving the hall unassisted at the end of the meeting.

Footage from the Third Plenum in July also showed no evidence he suffered a stroke.

AFP found no official reports that Xi had a stroke at either meeting.