Man arrested in Pakistan for alleged role in spreading disinformation linked to UK riots

Islamabad CNN —

Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Authority arrested a man on Tuesday who it claimed had spread disinformation thought to have enflamed the recent unrest in the UK.

In a statement shared with CNN, the FIA claimed that an X account user called @Channel3Nownews “shared images of a video regarding an incident that happened at Southport England. The X user @Channel3Nownews further posted an article on the website www.channel3now.com with the caption saying that a 17-year-old has been arrested in connection with a stabbing incident in Southport, England.

According to the FIA statement the “article contained a false claim about the arrest of a Muslim asylum seeker by police in the stabbing incident in a dance party in Southport on July 29, 2024.”

The FIA confirmed that the man has not been charged.

Police in Lahore have identified the man, arrested by the FIA, as Farhan Asif, and that he was questioned about the article on Monday.

Police told CNN that Asif allegedly admitted that he had written the story based on information copied from a UK-based social media account without verifying it.

It’s unclear if Asif has an attorney.

Protestors throw a garbage bin on fire outside a hotel in Rotherham, Britain, August 4, 2024.

Related article UK riots show how social media can fuel real-life harm. It’s only getting worse

A police official, who spoke to CNN, also shared that during the questioning it was learned that the website Asif was running was used to publish mainly American, British and Australian stories so that he could get online traffic from those countries and earn revenue via Google Ads.

Asif told police he would earn close to a thousand dollars a month by doing this, according to the official.

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