One deleted LinkedIn post due to false claims was viewed millions of times and sparked riots across England and Northern Ireland. The July 29 stabbing at a children’s dance sparked a wave of anxiety fueled by misinformation, particularly false reports that the suspect was an illegal immigrant.
Just hours after the attack, misinformation was widely spread through various unofficial news sources and personal accounts. This included a LinkedIn post from local resident Eddie Murray, posted three hours after the incident.
“My two youngest children went to a holiday club in Southport this morning to enjoy the day, but immigrants came in and killed/fatally injured multiple children,” he wrote. Murray expressed relief that the children were safe, but called for drastic measures: “If ever there was ever a time to completely close the border, it’s now!” That’s enough. ”
Even though LinkedIn removed posts of harmful content, the damage was done. The post was widely copied and reshared, leading to more than 2 million views across platforms, the BBC reported.
Misinformation spread like wildfire, partly due to a lack of detailed information from Merseyside Police. Police could not provide details about the suspect, who was a minor, as is customary. Authorities issued only a brief statement after the attack, saying armed officers had arrested the man and seized a knife. However, this limited update did little to stop the intense speculation that was already circulating on social media.
Murray’s post was just one of many that fueled this narrative. Shortly afterward, Indian online news account Upku News retweeted a screenshot of Murray’s claim as “confirmed,” where it received more than 500,000 views, according to the BBC.
The misinformation was amplified by prominent figures such as Britain First co-leader Paul Golding and Reform Party activist Nicholas Lisak, who claimed to have “confirmed the authenticity” of Mr Murray’s statements. By this time, the fabricated name “Ali al-Shakati” had emerged as the suspect’s presumed identity.
By the evening of July 30th, a Telegram group called “Southport Wake Up” had been set up, calling for a violent rally. Activists and far-right groups used the chaos to stir up anti-immigrant sentiment. Reports from the scene showed demonstrators shouting slogans against police, fueled by false narratives spread online.
Experts point out the serious consequences of such misinformation. Jonathan Hall KC, the Government’s independent reviewer on the Terrorism Bill, said the law currently “increases the risk of online disinformation”, with false claims about a suspect’s identity leading to subsequent acts of violence. He argued that there was a high possibility that they were related.
The confusion prompted media regulator Ofcom to admit there was a “clear link” between violence in England and Northern Ireland and the spread of disinformation on social media.
