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[Text/Observer Network Xiong Chaoran] Recently, far-right protests have continued to occur across the UK. In response to this most extensive violent riot in 13 years, the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) has been busy performing its "traditional skills".

According to a report by the British “Guardian” on August 11 local time, Christopher Steele, who served as the head of Russian affairs at MI6, claimed on the same day that Russia was "clearly involved" in the far-right riots, and security officials will keep a close eye on the instigators and will "very carefully" investigate those who have instigated anti-immigrant riots in the past two weeks.

Speaking to Times Radio about the riots, Steele said: "I think it's clear that Russia was involved, the extent of that and how effective it was I think is still up for debate. I mean, when you look at the initial disinformation surrounding the Southport murders, it did seem to be coming from a website that was associated with Russia."

The most extensive violent riots in the UK in 13 years began with a vicious incident that shocked the whole of the UK on July 29. At that time, a knife attack occurred in Southport, Merseyside, northwest England. A 17-year-old male suspect broke into a primary school dance class and committed a crime, killing three children and injuring many others. There were rumors online that the suspect was an undocumented immigrant, but the British authorities later disclosed his identity, showing that he was a descendant of Rwandan immigrants born in the UK.

Since July 30, protests have taken place in London, Liverpool, Bristol, Hull, Manchester and other places, and have turned into violent riots. Some rioters have vandalized refugee shelters, mosques, shops, etc., attacked police officers and burned police cars. On August 4, hundreds of people besieged a hotel in Rotherham that accommodated immigrant asylum seekers and clashed with the police, leading to the escalation of the riots.

Earlier, former MI6 chief Richard Dearlove also claimed without evidence that Russia was trying to incite protests by spreading the lie that the perpetrators of the Southport attack were immigrants. He added that the false information was spread by a website called "Channel3 Now" which is allegedly linked to Russia.

The Guardian said that the style of the Channel3 Now website is similar to that of a mainstream American online news channel, and it mixes American and British news materials that may be generated by artificial intelligence. The Guardian also said that it was this website that published false news, claiming that the perpetrator of the Southport attack was "on the MI6 watch list" and "also known to mental health services." Subsequently, this false news was amplified and spread by some well-known far-right Internet celebrities.

Steele said security services would be looking very carefully at the instigators of these events, including people like Tommy Robinson and even Nigel Farage, the right-wing populist who was once a leading Brexit campaigner and is now a member of Parliament, and has come under fire for arguing that the public was misled by the government about the Southport attack.

Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is a former leader of the far-right English Defence League. He recently posted a lot of content praising anti-immigrant protesters on various online platforms while on holiday in Cyprus.

Steele said security officials will be "looking at the travel activity of these individuals, who they're associated with, the movement of funds, and so on, because that may reveal a pattern of behavior that may lead to some conclusions about the extent to which Russia is interfering in this situation."

Asked whether MI6 monitored Farage's movements and messages, Steele said: "Obviously the security services would need a warrant to do that. "But I think essentially looking at communications, travel, financial transfers and so on is at the heart of this. "If we want to get to the truth, of course the government should take action against instigators. Now, I don't know whether Farage has ultimately been defined as an instigator in this matter."

According to a report by the British Independent on August 10 local time, the National Police Chiefs' Committee (NPCC) of the United Kingdom stated that 779 people have been arrested nationwide for participating in violent riots, of which 349 have been charged. The report said that rioters could face up to 10 years in prison.

A spokesman for the British prime minister said last week that cabinet ministers were investigating the "involvement of state actors in the riots." "Clearly, we have seen a lot of activity online, a lot of which may well have been amplified or involved state actors, amplifying some of the false information and misinformation we have seen."

The Guardian reported that the funeral of Alice Dasilva Aguiar, a girl killed in the Southport attack, was held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Southport on August 11, local time. Hundreds of people came to bid farewell to the girl that day, and Merseyside Police Chief Serena Kennedy and other police officers, medical paramedics and emergency service personnel were also present.

Kennedy said the parents of the murdered girl Alice had asked her to make a public appeal in the hope of calming the far-right riots that have been going on for weeks. She paid tribute to the girl's family and said: "You have shown great courage by asking me to come here... You want me to convey a message on your behalf, the family of Alice, that you do not want any more violence to happen on the streets of Britain in the name of your daughter."

Like the EU, the UK has been struggling to cope with the influx of immigrants for many years. Regarding the riots, Euronews believes that after the Conservative government's continuous anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies, the anti-immigrant sentiment that has been bubbling under the surface of British society for many years has finally erupted. Under the current tense situation, the newly-elected Labour government will have to take over this "hot potato" and clean up the mess.

Despite this, British media such as the BBC still insist that the role played by social media in the current chaos in British society is attracting increasing attention. It is false information, far-right forces and anti-immigration sentiment on the Internet that have fueled the violence in towns across England and Northern Ireland.

Reuters reported that the UK's Online Safety Act was passed into law in October last year, but has not yet been implemented. The law gives the media regulator, Ofcom, the power to impose fines of up to 10% of global turnover on social media platforms if they are found to have violated the law, such as failing to regulate content that incites violence or terrorism. Currently, Ofcom is still developing guidelines outlining how to implement the law, which is not expected to be implemented until early next year. Today, many politicians and public figures are calling for the law to be implemented faster.

According to the British Daily Telegraph on August 9, Prime Minister Starmer is considering reviewing and amending the UK's Online Safety Act to punish social media companies that allow the spread of "legal but harmful" content. It is reported that the bill, passed during the Conservative government, was originally intended to include such a clause, but the relevant clause was eventually withdrawn after then-British Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch complained that it was tantamount to "legislation for hurt feelings."

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