Speed Reads

Reports of our death have been greatly exaggerated

Reporter's tweets accidentally spark Queen Elizabeth death rumors

A series of tweets from a BBC reporter mistakenly sparked rumors that Queen Elizabeth had died. Ahmen Khawaja first tweeted that the Queen had been taken to a hospital and then later that she had died, citing the BBC. The tweets were picked up by some news sources, including CNN, however, when NBC reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment, they were told that the 89-year-old monarch was not only alive, but making public appearances. The tweets were quickly deleted, and the BBC issued a statement claiming they were part of an "internal drill" rehearsing what would happen in the event of the Queen's actual death. Khawaja, for her part, claimed that the tweets were a "prank" and that her phone had been left unattended. Marshall Bright