UK’s adversaries spreading conspiracies against
Kate Middleton after cancer diagnosis – report
Whitehall officials said to be concerned over possible
involvement of China, Russia and Iran in growing online rumours
Alisha
Rahaman Sarkar
1 hour ago
The
government is reportedly concerned that Britain’s adversaries are deliberately
fuelling disinformation about the Princess of Wales to "destabilise the
nation".
Kate’s
absence from the public eye following planned surgery in January became a
source of online rumours, speculation and conspiracy theories until the
princess revealed she had been diagnosed with cancer in a personal and moving
video message.
The
42-year-old princess said she needed to recover from surgery before she could
start “preventative chemotherapy”, as advised by her medical team. The news is
another cruel blow to the royal family with King Charles III and the future
queen both fighting cancer at the same time.
While
Kate’s video message has been met with an outpouring of public sympathy,
unfounded conspiracies have continued to circulate about both the truthfulness
of the princess’s announcement and cancer itself, with commentators online
questioning the efficacy of chemotherapy or blaming Kate’s diagnosis on
Covid-19 vaccines.
There are
now growing concerns among Whitehall officials about the possible involvement
of state adversaries like China, Russia and Iran in the rise of conspiracy
theories on social media surrounding the princess's health, The Telegraph
reported.
Alleged
Chinese interference in British democracy, just months ahead of an expected
general election, is to be raised in parliament on Monday by deputy prime
minister Oliver Dowden.
Downing
Street is said to be preparing fresh sanctions on Chinese individuals involved
in state-backed interference in Britain’s democratic processes, including a
cyberattack that saw the personal details of millions of voters accessed.
Ministers
were due to set out details on Monday of hacking incidents targeting the
Electoral Commission as well as 43 people including MPs and peers.
The
government last year launched a taskforce to protect the democratic integrity
of the UK from threats of foreign interference, with that remit including
tackling the spread of disinformation on social media.
“Countering
this is right at the heart of the work of the taskforce,” The Telegraph quoted
a government source as saying.
Prime
minister Rishi Sunak on Friday led the condemnation of social media trolls for
targeting the princess over her disappearance from the public eye.
"In
recent weeks she has been subjected to intense scrutiny and has been unfairly
treated by certain sections of the media around the world and on social
media," Mr Sunak said in a statement on X.
Imran
Ahmed, chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, said the
princess has been "revictimised by being blamed for not having come out
immediately".
“When
you’ve got a young lady, the Princess of Wales, who has suffered a medical
emergency, you see people flooding in with conspiracy theories, you see them
being amplified on social media platforms and pushed to millions and millions
of people,” he told the BBC.
“I think
it’s the inhumanity of the way that social media has made us behave, forcing
people to talk about things that can be very deeply personal.
“And also
seeing of course the impact of that on our society, how quickly it was picked
up by millions of people, and how much it’s done damage to the Royal family
themselves.”
Former
royal adviser Paddy Harverson said the speculation and pressure around the
princess's health had been the "worst I've ever seen".
Last week
the British Embassy in Ukraine was forced to deny rumours that the King had
died after Kremlin-approved state media channels, some with millions of
followers on social media, began spreading the fake news.
The first
false claims appeared on Telegram, when a photoshopped statement adorned with
the Buckingham Palace logo read: “The following announcement is made by royal
communications. The King passed away unexpectedly yesterday afternoon.”
"We
would like to inform you that the news about the death of King Charles III is
fake," the embassy clarified in a social media post.
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