Russia could be using online disinformation to fuel far-right riots that have broken out across the UK after the Southport killings on Monday, the former head of MI6 has warned LBC.
Sir Richard Dearlove told LBC's Nick Ferrari at Breakfast that he would not be surprised if the riots in Southport, London, Hartlepool, Manchester were stoked by Kremlin bots.Wild false rumours have spread online among far-right groups about the identity of the teen suspect accused of murdering three children and trying to murder several more in Southport on Monday.
Social media disinformation spread claiming that the attack was carried out by a Muslim asylum seeker who crossed the Channel in a small boat. The false information appears to have been posted online by a website called Channel 3 News - which has since apologised - before being widely circulated on far-right social media accounts, such as Tommy Robinson's Twitter.The 17-year-old who has been charged with the murders and attempted murders was born in Cardiff to parents who came from Rwanda.
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