Latest news with #anti-UK
Daily Record
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Record
Pro-independence social media accounts go silent after Iran hit by airstrikes
Many accounts which used pro-independence slogans and anti-UK messaging on X went silent after June 12. Dozens of social media accounts supporting Scottish independence have gone dark since Iran was hit by air strikes, according to reports. Many accounts which used pro-independence slogans and anti-UK messaging on X, formerly Twitter, went silent after June 12, according to the UK Defence Journal. This was when a major Israeli airstrike campaign against Iranian military and cyber infrastructure took place. Iran then had severe fuel shortages and a media blackout. Labour MP for East Renfrewshire Blair McDougall told the Record: 'This is a reminder that our enemies see the chaos of nationalism as a way to weaken us. 'At a time when the SNP refuse to update their defence policy to confront the realities of threats from Vladimir Putin and other dictators, this should give pause to anyone tempted to give the SNP another five years.' Between 2022 and 2024 researchers from the American Clemson University had identified more than 80 accounts posing as users from the UK. They identified themselves with descriptions like 'NHS nurse' or ' Glaswegian socialist'. They concluded that these accounts were probably ran by or on behalf of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Since late 2021 they had produced roughly 250,000 tweets. The messages mixed pro- independence and progressive messages with criticism of the UK Government and the monarchy. One message - viewed a million times - read: 'The people robbing this country travel by private jet not by dinghy.' According to Clemson, the accounts were responsible for at least four per cent of all Scottish independence -related posts on X in early last year. This was about four times more than the official SNP account in the same period. One of the lead researchers on the project Darren Linvill said the aim was to create the impression that support for independence was bigger than it was. He said: 'Anyone in sales will tell you the bandwagon fallacy is a powerful tool.' The accounts received hundreds of thousands of retweets, likes, and comments. But after the Israeli attacks - which reportedly hit infrastructure linked to the IRGC - the accounts which had previously posted regularly suddenly stopped doing so. Within two days of the strikes Iran only had five per cent internet access.
The Herald Scotland
12 hours ago
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
'Dozens of pro-Indy accounts went offline when Israel bombed Iran'
Many had posted hundreds of times per week on X (formerly Twitter), often using pro-independence slogans, anti-UK messaging, and identity cues like 'NHS nurse' or 'Glaswegian socialist.' But all have stopped issuing messages at the same time and have remained silent since. The sudden disappearance was picked up by other users of social media platform, which is being described as 'the most visible rupture to date in a long-running foreign influence operation' by the journal. It accuses Tehran of Tehran, 'deliberately using the Scottish independence issue to weaken its adversary by amplifying internal division' through its concentrated and covert social media canmpaign. Iranian bots haven't posted for four days. Fiona, Where are ye noo? — The Majority #AbolishHolyrood (@themajorityscot) June 16, 2025 The use of automatic 'bots' and 'astroturf' of 'sock puppet' (fake) accounts on social media by state actors and rabble rousers is a known phenomenon, with Rusia often suspected to deploying such techniques to guide narratives around divisive topics such as immigration. It is also suspected that it has been used to influence elections. However, the existence of such a wide-ranging network has never been proven. One veteran open-source intelligence researcher told the Journal: 'The timing, posting patterns, and network structure all point in one direction. 'What we're seeing is classic IRGC-linked activity: coordinated accounts posting at regular intervals, linguistic and thematic uniformity across profiles, and sudden synchronous silence. A study by researchers at Clemson University's Media Forensics Hub previousy identified more than 80 accounts posing as socially conscious British users. "Jake", "Fiona" and "Lucy" have been inactive since the 12 of July. For such prolific pro-nationalist posters on the platform I don't understand what happened to them all on the 12th of July? Hmmmmm.... now what could have happened. — ScotFax (@scotfax) June 23, 2025 Many carried biographies such as 'Ex NHS Nurse. Hopeful for a better future with a lot less inequality,' designed to appear credible to domestic audiences. The Clemson team concluded that these accounts were likely operated by or on behalf of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Their objective appeared to be the amplification of domestic political tensions in the UK, particularly around constitutional issues. Since late 2021, the network produced around 250,000 tweets designed to blend into genuine political discourse and engage real users. The content mixed pro-independence rhetoric with populist criticism of the UK government, anti-monarchy sentiment, and solidarity with progressive causes. One tweet, which was viewed over a million times, stated, 'the people robbing this country travel by private jet not by dinghy.' Another drew attention to Prince George receiving flying lessons at age 11, contrasting it with worsening poverty across the UK.
Wales Online
04-06-2025
- Business
- Wales Online
Spain anti-UK protests erupt in holiday hotspots as locals fume at British tourists
Spain anti-UK protests erupt in holiday hotspots as locals fume at British tourists Despite the vocal anti-tourism demonstrations from irate EU residents in the likes of the Canary Islands and Balearics, British holidaymakers have been spotted taking in the sun Spain has seen protests against "overtourism" across the country, targeting British holidaymakers in particular. But even while the demonstrations take place in the holidays hotspots such as the Canary Islands and Balearics figures from TravelgateX indicate a substantial rise in trips to the Balearic Islands. Over the last week there has been a 10.1% increase in bookings compared to the week before and also a 29.7% rise against the same timeframe last year. The Balearic Islands witnessed a surge in popularity, rising to become Spain's third-most-popular destination for holiday-seekers in the past week, accounting for 16% of total bookings. They only trail slightly behind Andalusia and Catalonia, each grabbing an 18% share of reservations. New insights show that close to one-fifth of this week's bookings across Spain were made around two months prior to the trip while another 18% were secured with even more lead time, surpassing 90 days. Article continues below On the flip side 10.4% of bookings were last-minute decisions, either done just the day before or on the actual day of travel. Couples represented the majority stake in these holiday plans, comprising 50% of the bookings, and notably, almost half of the tourists (48.9%) are choosing short stays between two to five nights, with 25% opting for quick one-night stays, reports Yorkshire Live. Spaniards are at the forefront of these statistics, responsible for 55.5% of bookings, but British guests are in hot pursuit, making up 18.8% of the figure, followed by Germans at 3.3%, with Portuguese visitors at 2.8%. A local, unimpressed with the study's findings, expressed their doubt by saying: "Who are TravelgateX? Never heard of them. "I suspect that the previous week they had nine bookings - and last week (being half-term holiday in the UK) their bookings rose to 10. Marvellous... and risible." One person was critical about the data representing their area, saying, "Not Menorca - it's extremely quiet, worryingly quiet," reflecting scepticism following the release of the study's statistics. Article continues below Another individual humorously reacted to the figures with the comment: "We win again! The winningest winners in the history of winning." While someone else succinctly responded with a doubtful: "Come on now."
Scotsman
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Scotsman
A message from my adopted home, Ukraine: Scotland must prepare for war
With Trump ready to reward Putin's expansionism, Scotland must get ready for what comes next – war, writes Kyiv-based journalist Andrew Sweeney Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Nothing prepares you for war. For me, it began with waking up at my usual 7am and turning on my phone. The intensity of what followed is hard to describe. It was like my phone had become possessed, spewing a litany of notifications, vibrations, and missed calls. That is how the morning of 24 February, 2022, began for me. More than three years later, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, my adopted home, rages on. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It is a reality that I fear will come to Scotland in the near future too. Recent events, historical precedent and political reality point to another world war beginning in less than a decade. The view from Andrew Sweeney's flat after a deadly Russian missile strike hit Kyiv earlier this week | Andrew Sweeney Pathetic increase in defence spending Yet awareness of this looming nightmare is non-existent back home. Our politics trundles on with the usual, cheap point-scoring and parochial nonsense we have come to expect of Holyrood and Westminster. Military spending, set to increase by a pathetic increment of 0.2 per cent, is not sufficient for the challenges to come. The West had its chance to avoid this, but its support for Ukraine came too little, too late. The consequences for Russia of its aggression have not been nearly severe enough, and now, with the United States apparently determined to reward Moscow's aggression with Ukrainian territory, the Russians know that military expansionism can work. So they will regroup, recruit and rearm, and come for the Baltic States and Poland next, as they have always said they would. These Nato countries will cite Article 5 of the alliance's treaty, and we will come to their defence. We will be at war. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I know there will be some reading this who think I am an alarmist. Up until February 24, I didn't believe Russia would invade Ukraine either, even though the signs were obvious in hindsight. You might be thinking, 'So what? It's so far away.' Yet a war with Russia, even if it is primarily fought in Central and Eastern Europe, will affect Scotland in ways many can't imagine. Russian media awash with anti-UK vitriol If you want to get an idea, start by watching Russian media. It is jarring stuff, with the United Kingdom receiving much of the worst vitriol. It is not unusual for nationalistic pundits to muse over which UK cities would be the first to get nuked by Russia in a full-blown war. They don't do this because they want to force Russians to support war. They're pandering to what their audience wants to hear. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Nuclear attacks cannot, of course, be ruled out in a war between nuclear powers, but their use is unlikely, despite the vitriolic fantasies of Russia's propagandists. Neither the Axis powers nor the Allies used chemical weapons in the Second World War, despite their previous widespread use. The conventional military threats we'll face are bad enough. The frequent flights of Russian military planes near our airspace make their power projection clear, and Lossiemouth and Leuchars would be major targets. Faslane, home to the UK's nuclear deterrent, is definitely within the Russians' crosshairs. The Russians will not hesitate to attack our cities either. A potentially fatal decision The disruption caused by the mere possibility of air attacks cannot be underestimated. In Ukraine, if a single MiG 31 jet takes off in Russia, it will trigger a countrywide alert at any time, day or night. Imagine air raid sirens going off, every day, for years. Every time the alarm sounds, you will frantically check your phone to find out what kind of threat has been reported. And if it is at night, you will try to decide whether to head to a shelter or risk going back to sleep. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad When attacks do happen, the terror is unimaginable. On Wednesday night, 12 people were killed in Kyiv; I saw a building burn to ash from my apartment. The other threats to Scotland are more subtle. Expect our internet and social media to be disrupted, with extremist voices suddenly surging in popularity, just as we saw in Romania. The social media presence of a fringe presidential candidate exploded after receiving Russian funding, with the election cancelled as a result. Far left, far right, it makes no difference. Russia will support anything, regardless of ideology, as long as it suits their interests. Trump's reward for Russian aggression Still sounds implausible? The US wants to reward Russian aggression in Ukraine by recognising the annexation of Crimea. This is worse than Munich in 1938, when we abandoned Czechoslovakia to the Nazis. If history repeats itself, then Ukraine represents the Spanish Civil War, not for its politics but as a warning of future global conflict, and how it will be fought. From Guernica in 1937 to Bucha in 2022 and beyond. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Unionist or nationalist, left or right, the coming storm will affect us all. Donald Trump's second presidency has already upended everything we took for granted about our geo-political security. He has only been in office for three months – imagine what is coming next? Start to put plans in place; consider how you might respond to interruptions to the power supply or the internet, for example. A global conflict would likely disrupt food supplies, so consider stocking up, and do not forget medicines. We are not immune to history. When an established power declines and fascism rears its head, war will always start, and Russia has nothing to fear from a weak West. 'If you tolerate this, then your children will be next,' they said about the Spanish Civil War. They were right then, and prescient about now.
Irish Daily Mirror
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
Terror attack targeting UK 'just hours away' before being foiled by police
British security services allegedly foiled a suspected terror plot involving Iranian agents just hours before a devastating attack was set to take place. Two suspected Iranian terror cells were raided on Saturday in a sweeping operation specifically targeting groups alleged to be working on behalf of the state against the UK. It's understood that the cells planned to carry out a "major" attack against a UK premises, Mirror UK reports. The co-ordinated raids targeted properties in west London, Rochdale, Swindown, Manchester and Stockport on Saturday night. Four men were questioned last night on "suspicion of preparation of a terrorist act". A separate operation in London disrupted an alleged Iranian spy cell just hours earlier. Three men were arrested on suspicion of spying for the Islamic Republic. Officials were initially concerned that news of the arrests could have created a volatile situation among the other alleged Iranian enemy actors. According to the Daily Telegraph, the alleged plot was hours away from being carried out. There have been growing concerns about Iran's espionage and anti-UK activity. Head of MI5 Sir Ken McCallum warned the plotting of attacks was increasing at an "unprecedented pace and scale". Ongoing conflict in the Middle East has been cited as the reason for the "broadening" of Iranian aggression. It's alleged that Iran has already backed 20 plots against journalists and dissidents living in the UK in the past three years alone. Overall, the security services' investigations into state threats have surged by a half, including assassination, kidnap, arson and sabotage plots. In October, Sir Ken explained that Iran uses its criminal proxies, including major drug traffickers and lower level criminals, to avoid getting its own hands dirty. The spymaster warned anyone considering taking up the job for Iran that they face the "full weight of the national security apparatus". "It's a choice you'll regret", he added. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the arrests, that took place across the UK on Saturday, were "some of the biggest counter-state threat and counter-terrorism operations we have seen in recent years". "These are major operations and the ongoing investigation is immensely important, and, of course, it involves Iranian nationals in both investigations. But this reflects the complexity of the kinds of challenges to our national security we continue to face."
