Image of Julian Assange in Prison Is Not Real But AI-Generated!

The creator of this AI-generated image told The Quint that this image was created on an AI tool known as Midjourney.

Fact-check: This viral photo of Julian Assange in poor condition in prison is AI-generated and is being falsely shared as a real photo.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

An image showing a close-up of an exhausted man is being shared with a claim that it shows Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

The claim points out that Assange is in terrible condition in the prison.

Who shared it?: Along with several social media users, the Russian Embassy in Kenya also tweeted this photo stating that Assange is in jail because he had released a video of United States Forces firing on Iraqi civilians 13 years ago.

(Note: Swipe to view all screenshots.)

An archive can be seen here.

An archive can be seen here.

(This image is also viral on Twitter.)

Is this image real?: This image is generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI) on an AI art tool, Midjourney.

More about Assange: Assange was arrested in London in 2019 for publishing confidential documents about the US army and their actions in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2010.

How did we find out the truth?: We ran a reverse image search on the viral picture and came across a tweet carrying the same photo by a user named 'The Errant Friend'.

• The image was shared on 30 March.

• The caption of the image mentioned words of support for Assange.

An archive can be seen here.

(Source: Twitter/Screenshot)

• This profile regularly posts AI-generated images and states 'Free Assange' in the bio.

• The same profile had also tweeted another AI-generated image of Assange on 17 March.

• Both the images had a watermark over it which read: Photo property of "E".

This account is dedicated to Assange. 

(Source: Twitter/Screenshot)

• We came across the user's Telegram channel where the creator has clarified about using AI to generate this viral image of Assange.

• The text said, "I sought to make his documented suffering real, and succeeded in doing so. The image is designed to evoke a visceral response in the viewer, putting them into a moral quandary. What do we do, when Julian is not just a memory and platitudes, but a human suffering in front of us?"

The user confirmed that this image is not real but AI-generated.

(source: Telegram/Screenshot)

We reached out "The Errant Friend": The creator of this viral image confirmed to The Quint that he created this image using Midjourney version 5.

• He also added that he wanted to create awareness around Assange's state.

Report with the creator's interview: We came across a German news outlet, BILD, which carried an interview with the creator of this viral image.

• The report stated that the creator identifies themselves as E.

• It adds that Assange's wife, Stella (40), a Swedish-Spanish lawyer, told BILD that this photo is a fake.

We looked for more AI-generated images of Assange of Midjourney: We searched for Assange's images with similar prompts.

(Note: Swipe to check all the screenshots.)

A relevant prompt search showed this result of his older version.

A relevant prompt search showed this result.

The prompt mentioned prison.

Conclusion: Clearly, this viral photo of Julian Assange in a poor condition in prison is AI-generated and is being falsely shared as a real photo.

Several such AI-generated image have recently gone viral as real and The Quint's WebQoof team has debunked some of them here and here.

(Note: The story has been updated to add the creator's quote.)

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