Hackers broke into an official Twitter account operated by Fox News early Monday and posted a series of tweets that claimed President Barack Obama had been assassinated. The Twitter feed for Fox News\' political news -- @FoxNewspolitics -- sent out a series of \"malicious and false tweets,\" starting around 2:00 am, Fox News confirmed in a statement. The posts had not been taken down hours later. \"@BarackObama has just passed. The President is dead. A sad 4th of July, indeed. President Barack Obama is dead,\" read the first of the Obama-related tweets. Just before false posts began, the hackers apparently announced their control to the account, with the post: \"Just regained full access to our Twitter and email. Happy 4th.\" The updates, which were \"retweeted\" by thousands on the micro-blogging site and prompted headlines around the world, said Obama had been \"shot twice at a Ross\' restaurant in Iowa\" during a campaign spot. The US leader is in fact in Washington, not Iowa, and was planning to celebrate the July 4 holiday with his family and military families later Monday. \"President @BarackObama assassinated, 2 gunshot wounds have proved too much. It\'s a sad 4th for #america. #obamadead RIP,\" continued the tweets. Fox News said the hacking was being investigated, and that it \"regrets any distress the false tweets may have created.\"