Reports and articles on social media claim that former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has been arrested by the Navy SEALs (Sea, Air and Land Teams), a special operational force. However, this assertion is false.
“Navy SEALS Arrest Hillary Clinton,” says the title of the March 4, 2021 article (here, here) shared on social media (here).
The article claims that the arrest took place on the night of March 2 and was orchestrated by former President Donald Trump. Clinton is alleged to have been arrested on charges of “treason, destruction of government property, and the aid and support of the enemy”, and that the documents show she was involved “in conspiracies to assassinate Republican lawmakers across the country.”
The Navy website explains that the Navy SEALs are “expertly trained to deliver highly specialized, intensely challenging warfare capabilities beyond the capabilities of standard military forces” (www.navy.com/seals).
These allegations of Clinton’s arrest are related to the widespread QAnon conspiracy whose followers believe Trump secretly includes a cabal of child sex predators that includes prominent Democrats, Hollywood elites and “deep state” allies, including Clinton ( here). “Q”, the secret leader of the group, falsely predicted Clinton’s arrest in the past (here).
Fans also falsely believed that Trump was still in power in secret and would be sworn in for a second term on March 4 (here, here).
After Trump lost the election to President Biden, he is no longer president and therefore has no power over the military: Reuters has the claim that Trump is still in power and has reduced power over the military here and here, completed.
Reuters also earlier dismissed a false QAnon-related allegation that Clinton was wearing a single monitor (here).
A U.S. Navy spokesman confirmed by telephone to Reuters that the claim that Clinton was arrested by SEALs was certainly not true, adding that SEALs were not being arrested.
Clinton can be seen here and here speaking at a Washington Post International Women’s Day rally on March 8, six days after the posts claim she was arrested.
Clinton’s social media accounts have been active since March 2 with new posts, as seen twitter.com/HillaryClinton/ , here, here.
Hillary Clinton’s press team did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
VERDICT
Untrue. SEALs from the U.S. Navy did not arrest Clinton on March 2; Clinton has since appeared at public events and the claim stems from QAnon.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here.