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Authorities in Pakistan have charged a man with cyber terrorism, in relation to disinformation thought to have fuelled UK unrest.<\/p>\n
Police told the BBC that Farhan Asif was linked to a website which gave a false name for the suspected Southport attacker and suggested he was an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK on a small boat.<\/p>\n
The article, published on the website Channel3Now in the hours after the attack, was widely quoted in viral posts on social media.<\/p>\n
Unrest broke out in England and Northern Ireland after the fatal stabbing attack, in which three young girls died.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
On Tuesday, police in Lahore said they had questioned Mr Asif about the article.<\/p>\n
Mr Asif said he had written it based on information copied from a UK-based social media account without verifying it, a police officer told the BBC.<\/p>\n
Mr Asif said that he ran the website alone.<\/p>\n
Pakistan\u2019s Federal Investigation Agency has since taken up the case and will investigate whether anyone further is involved.<\/p>\n
BBC Verify previously tracked down several people linked to Channel3Now and questioned a person who claimed to be \u201cmanagement\u201d at the site.<\/p>\n
That person told the BBC that the publication of the false name \u201cshouldn\u2019t have happened, but it was an error, not intentional\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
False information about the attacker spread online after three young girls were killed at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on 29 July.<\/p>\n
Violent disorder then broke out in Southport before spreading to towns and cities across England and Northern Ireland, fuelled by misinformation, the far-right and anti-immigration sentiment.<\/p>\n
According to the latest Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) figure on Tuesday, 494 people have been charged in relation to the recent rioting and unrest.<\/p>\n
More than 130 people have already been sentenced with most sent to jail.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n