BHC says ‘it is a matter for the Pakistani authorities’.

ISLAMABAD   -   Pakistan and the United Kingdom are in contact over a Pakistani man named Farhan Asif who has been charged with cyber-terrorism after allegedly spreading false information - believed to have fuelled anti-immigration riots in the United Kingdom.

The 31-year-old software engineer, who lacks any formal journalism credentials, was accused of publishing a fake story on his Channel3Now website. The article falsely claimed that a Muslim asylum seeker was responsible for a knife attack in Southport that resulted in the deaths of three young girls, aged six, seven, and nine, during a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga session for children.

This disinformation, posted shortly after the attack, quickly went viral on social media, contributing to widespread unrest across the UK. Authorities have linked this misinformation to days of violent riots that targeted mosques, hotels housing asylum seekers, and police officers. The riots affected numerous towns and cities, with far-right groups accused of exacerbating the situation by spreading the false narrative.

Diplomatic sources told The Nation that there was no formal request by the UK to extradite Farhan Asif but the two countries were in ‘regular contact.’

“While we (Pakistan and the UK) are in regular contact (in the issue), there has been no request from the UK to extradite him. We (Pakistan) are in fact dealing well with the case and they (the UK) should be satisfied with it,” said a Pakistani diplomat, who asked not to be named.

Other diplomats said Farhan Asif was being tried under the Pakistani laws. “This is a serious case as so many people were affected due to his irresponsibility,” said one diplomat. A British High Commission spokesperson said: “It is a matter for the Pakistani authorities.” Asif was arrested in Lahore and brought before a court, where he was charged with cyber-terrorism and remanded into custody for one day. According to Federal Investigation Agency, Asif was motivated by the desire to generate income through sensationalist clickbait content on his website. The actual suspect in the stabbing attack, Axel Rudakubana, is a UK-born citizen with Rwandan Christian heritage, not a Muslim asylum seeker as falsely reported.

Despite this, misinformation about the suspect’s identity - including a fabricated name, “Ali al-Shakati” - was widely circulated, leading to public panic and violence.

UK authorities, grappling with the aftermath of the riots, have arrested over 1,000 individuals. Pakistani authorities have now transferred Asif’s case to the FIA which handles cases related to cyberterrorism.