(RightIsRight.co) – A recent report by the Mail on Sunday has alleged that the UK government used the military’s resources to conduct surveillance on those who criticized and questioned the country’s coronavirus lockdown measures.
According to the report, military operatives from the 77 Brigade, the UK’s “information warfare” unit, conducted the operation, monitoring politicians and journalists who expressed doubts about the official pandemic response through their social media activities.
The report claims tens of thousands of people, including ex-Conservative Minister David Davis, journalist Peter Hitchens, and Toby Young, were watched for their dissenting views on lockdown policies.
The UK army whistleblower stated that the monitoring of social media posts, including those of scared individuals, led to the monitoring of the UK population.
In response to the report, former Cabinet Minister Davis expressed outrage at the covert surveillance of those questioning the government’s policies, while journalist Hitchens questioned if he was “shadow-banned” on social media for his criticisms.
A Downing Street source stated that the units from 77 Brigade have significantly scaled back their operations since the end of the lockdowns.
The recent report highlights the potential consequences of monitoring individuals’ dissent and freedom of speech, especially during a crisis where information can play a critical role in shaping public opinion.
The waste of public money and the attack on fundamental freedoms have raised questions about the government’s response to the pandemic and the role of military units in monitoring citizens.
According to one portion of the report:
“Documents obtained by the civil liberties group Big Brother Watch, and shared exclusively with this newspaper, exposed the work of Government cells such as the Counter Disinformation Unit, based in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, and the Rapid Response Unit in the Cabinet Office.
“But the most secretive is the MoD’s 77th Brigade, which deploys ‘non-lethal engagement and legitimate non-military levers as a means to adapt behaviours of adversaries.’ According to a whistleblower who worked for the brigade during the lockdowns, the unit strayed far beyond its remit of targeting foreign powers.
“They said that British citizens’ social media accounts were scrutinised – a sinister activity that the Ministry of Defence, in public, repeatedly denied doing.”
