UK counterterror police investigating attacks on Pakistani dissidents Submitted by Peter McNamara on Thu, 01/08/2026 - 11:58 Assaults, arson and break-ins targeting prominent exiles have left police fearing a new wave of ‘transnational repression' Shahzad Akbar left Pakistan for the UK in 2022, following the fall of Imran Khan's government (AFP/File) Off On the morning of Christmas Eve, Shahzad Akbar, a former adviser to Pakistan’s imprisoned ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan, answered the door of his home in Cambridge, England, where he now lives in self-imposed exile. “Are you Shahzad Akbar?” the man on his doorstep asked. The man then attacked Akbar in front of his family, leaving him with a fractured nose and severe bruising. The assailant made no attempt to steal anything, before running off. His pronunciation of Akbar's name was unusually good, Akbar recalls. “He looked white but his pronunciation seemed rehearsed,” he told Middle East Eye. On the same day , a break-in was also reported at the London home of Adil Raja, a former Pakistan army major turned journalist, who is a friend of Akbar. Raja, who was out of the UK at the time, was told by police that no valuables seemed to have been stolen but that mail carrying his name had been removed from a drawer and placed where it could be seen. Raja told MEE he believed the break-in was intended to convey a message: “We know you live here.” Pakistan offers to 'take grooming gang leaders' if UK hands over dissidents Read More » A week later, at 4pm on 31 December, Akbar’s home was attacked again. Two men were caught on CCTV breaking a window. One was carrying what appeared to be a burning rag, which he threw towards the house, but without causing any further damage. Neither Akbar nor his family were in the property at the time, and no one was hurt. But Akbar, who has young children, had only left the house a few minutes earlier and considers himself lucky. He told MEE: “I’m in no way accusing anyone.” But he said that, following recent threats made against him, he believes the incidents form part of “a pattern of transnational repression” targeting Pakistani political dissidents abroad. Both incidents are being investigated by Counter Terrorism Policing officers from London because of what a police spokesperson described as their “apparently highly targeted nature”. The spokesperson told MEE that a 34-year-old man was arrested in Essex on 5 January by armed police on suspicion of attempted arson and possession of a firearm. He was later released on bail, pending further enquiries. Detectives have said they “retain an open mind as to any potential motivation behind either of the incidents”. MEE has contacted the Pakistani embassy in London for comment. Acid attack This is not the first time Akbar has been attacked. The last time the threats began to intensify was in October 2023. The following month, Akbar was attacked with acid by a man who could not be traced. Conservative MP David Davis called on then Foreign Secretary David Cameron to summon Pakistan’s high commissioner over the incident, which he compared to the poisonings of Sergei and Yulia Skripal, a former Russian spy and his daughter, in Salisbury in 2018. 'There’s very little doubt that TNR is on the rise' – Andrew Chubb, lecturer in international relations at Lancaster University Davis also suggested that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency might have been involved. “The circumstantial evidence that this attack was conducted at the behest of the ISI is persuasive,” Davis told The Independent. He added: “The Pakistanis have to understand that whatever the standards of law at home, they cannot be allowed to attack British residents on British soil.” Both Akbar and Raja believe the Christmas Eve attacks on their homes were “coordinated”. They fear that three incidents in the space of a week mark a clear escalation in the threat posed to critics living in exile overseas. Raja describes himself and Akbar as “the two biggest dissidents calling out [the] Pakistan military establishment”, while Akbar has called himself “the most hated man” of Pakistan’s powerful army chief. Others say their families who remain in Pakistan are used to silence dissent. Raja’s mother was kidnapped as she attempted to leave the country in 2022, and Akbar’s brother in Pakistan was held captive for over three months. In a first, Pakistan sentences its former spy chief to 14 years in prison Read More » Akbar left Pakistan for the UK in April 2022 after Imran Khan’s government was removed in a no-confidence vote. Khan was subsequently arrested and remains in prison on corruption charges that his supporters say are politically motivated. Last year, the threat of transnational repression (TNR) facing dissident exiles in the UK was the subject of an inquiry by the UK parliament’s human rights committee. In its report , the committee said that transnational repression is “generally understood to refer to certain state-directed crimes or actions against individuals that take place outside the territory of the perpetrating state”, and that such repression is meant to have a “‘chilling effect’ on freedom of expression across entire communities”. The committee reported multiple evidence submissions accusing Pakistan of transnational repression tactics, along with Russia , China and Saudi Arabia . Andrew Chubb, a senior lecturer in international relations at Lancaster University, who gave evidence to the committee, told MEE that “there’s very little doubt that TNR is on the rise” globally. Escalation in UK But the escalation in the UK has been felt most strongly in recent weeks, with other critics of Pakistan reporting threats online and some now adopting the term “transnational terrorism” to describe the threat they face. “People don’t know when they might be shot... or attacked with acid,” says Roshaan Khattak, a documentary filmmaker and University of Cambridge doctoral student who has also received threats. British MPs question Pakistan's legal system after Imran Khan sentencing Read More » In November, Khattak, whose doctorate investigates enforced disappearances and other human rights abuses in Balochistan, a region of Pakistan, received a threatening message. “You think UK, Europe, Canada, Sweden is safe? [sic]” it said. “Anyone who challenges Markhor [another word for the ISI] will be defeated no matter where they are,” it added. The message referred to an incident in Stockholm in 2022 when Khattak’s hotel room was robbed and a man was seen with a dagger nearby. “You got lucky”, the message said. Some critics of the Pakistani government and military have expressed concern over whether their safety is assured in the UK. Lawyer Clive Stafford Smith said in the wake of the first attack on Akbar that the FBI had advised his clients not to come to the UK because it was “very weak with assassination attempts”. At the time of the second attack against him, Akbar had been told by police he could move back to his home and was in the process of moving some of his possessions when it happened. In Khattak’s case, both Wolfson College, where he is a student, and the University of Cambridge have been criticised for their lack of action in providing him with appropriate security in light of previous threats made against him. In April 2025, former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell wrote to both, citing concerns that Khattak, whose cousin is imprisoned in Pakistan for human rights activism, had not been afforded “adequate security measures”. A Wolfson College spokesperson said at the time: “The College is and has been taking all steps toward resolving the situation, including ongoing conversation with the student.” Crackdown on 'digital terrorism' Back in Pakistan, the government has sought to further undermine Adil Raja and other critics by handing down double life sentences for so-called “digital terrorism”. Among those sentenced was Washington DC-based journalist Moeed Pirzada. Two days after the court found him guilty, on 4 January, Pirzada's home mysteriously caught fire. While Pirzada was out to dinner at the time, his two daughters were home. No casualties were reported. 'The future is uncertain in terms of safety and stability' – Adil Raja, former Pakistan army major turned journalist Criticism of the government in Pakistan is often accepted. But its army, which is seen as the country’s true ruler, is above criticism and acts as a kingmaker. Elected officials need its backing to take power, and its chief, General Asim Munir, is the country’s most powerful man. A couple of weeks before the attacks, Munir oversaw what critics called a “constitutional coup” when he amended the country’s 27th amendment, giving himself power over the navy and air force as well as the army, which controls its intelligence services. Munir also granted himself lifelong immunity from criminal prosecution. Allegations of repression by force overseas have been suggested before. In 2022, Ahmad Waqass Goraya, a prominent critic of the Pakistani army based in the Netherlands, told the BBC that he was sure Pakistan’s intelligence services were behind an attempt on his life in Rotterdam. A British man was eventually convicted of the plot. Going forward, exiled dissidents are unsure what the future holds and are urging the British government to act. “The future is uncertain in terms of safety and stability,” said Raja. Akbar added: “Ordinary families should not be forced to keep moving because the state is unwilling or unable to act. “Ultimately, this is a question of resolve, political will, resources and priorities.” The Foreign Office declined to comment on specific cases, but urged anyone who believed they were at risk to report incidents or suspicious activity to the police. It said it took the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms and safety “extremely seriously”. 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