The News of Cameroonian Football Star Samuel Eto'o Saving Migrants From Libya Is Fake

In lieu of the increased awareness of the tragic treatment of African migrants in Libya, rumors of relief efforts have been swelling on social media at the same time.

Photos have been circulating on Twitter of migrants on a flight returning home from Libya after being rescued from slavery, with text accompanying that Cameroonian football star Samuel Eto'o is the one responsible for the effort.

The photo of the migrants sitting in the plane is over a year old—and the image is showing migrants heading for Burkina Faso from Libya, BBC reports.

Although many were quick to congratulate and applaud Eto'o for the effort, he took to Facebook this past weekend to dispute this rumor, saying (translated from French):

"Several sites have circulated a rumor that I would have given money to every migrant returnee, in relation to a topical issue. This rumor is absolutely unfounded! I would therefore take advantage of this opportunity, dear brothers and sisters, to emphasize that love prevents more evils than money can solve. So let's not waste our precious time looking for thrills at the expense of grieving people, but let us use this time to prevent other brothers from being deprived of their dignity. Let us not just react when we can prevent, because among these victims are certainly people who have been our neighbours at some point, but to whom we have not daigné to look kindly. Let us build our Africa by having a positive impact on each other!"