British counter-terrorism police are investigating a series of what authorities have described as “highly targeted” attacks against two Pakistani dissidents living in the United Kingdom, according to a report published by The Guardian on Friday.
Scotland Yard’s counter-terrorism command took over the investigation following four attacks that began on Christmas Eve in Cambridgeshire and Buckinghamshire. One person has been arrested, and one of the incidents involved the use of a firearm.
The attacks targeted two prominent supporters of former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan, who js currently incarcerated. One of the victims told The Guardian that his attackers appeared to be “fair-skinned, white or wearing masks” and said he feared for his life.
The first two attacks took place on Christmas Eve. In Chesham, Buckinghamshire, two men broke into the home of a dissident shortly after 8am and vandalised the property.
The second attack occurred at the Cambridgeshire home of rights lawyer Mirza Shahzad Akbar, a human rights lawyer and former member of Imran’s cabinet.
Akbar, was the accountability czar in the PTI government, was recently declared a proclaimed offender by an Islamabad court. He also faces extradition efforts. In December, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had met United Kingdom High Commissioner Jane Marriott and handed over extradition papers for Akbar.
Akbar, 48, told the newspaper he was attacked just after 8am when he opened his front door.
“A masked man started punching me, after asking, ‘are you Shahzad Akbar?’ I must have got 25-30 punches on my face,” he said. He added that the attacker appeared “trained”, with “proper footwork like a boxer, going only for my face”.
“My children and wife … were terrorised and screaming,” Akbar said, adding that he managed to push the attacker out of the house.
Following the incident, counter-terrorism officers assumed control of the investigation.
On police advice, Akbar and his family moved out of their home and went into hiding. He said that on December 31, he briefly returned to the property, and minutes after he left, a second attack took place.
“Six minutes after my departure, two men were seen on the CCTV, faces covered,” Akbar said. “One man with a firearm shot straight into the front window; three shots were fired and the window was pierced through.”
He said another attacker attempted to start a fire by throwing a burning rag through the window, but neighbours came outside, prompting the attackers to flee.
A third attack occurred on January 10. Akbar said one man “sprayed some chemicals on the outer wall and then broke windows with an iron bar” before fleeing after alarms were triggered. Police said racist graffiti was also sprayed on the exterior of the house.
Akbar said he believed he was targeted because of his political views. “I am a Pakistani dissident living in exile here,” he told The Guardian. “I am an open critic of the Pakistani regime.”
“I cannot say who did it. However, one thing is certain: it was a targeted attack and the people who attacked were probably hired by someone,” he said.
Akbar also said he had been the victim of an unsolved acid attack at his home in 2023.
“I fear for my life and for my family’s lives,” he said.
According to The Guardian, counter-terrorism officials have warned of an increase in attacks in the UK carried out by criminal proxies acting on behalf of states such as Russia, Iran and China against critics of their regimes.
Britain’s Foreign Office has been criticised for failing to speak publicly about the attacks.
