GB News presenter Alex Armstrong and social media commentator Bernadette Spofforth have apologised to Green Party deputy leader Mothin Ali and agreed to pay “substantial damages” over false claims linking him to the 2024 Harehills disorder in Leeds.

Ali and other local Muslims played a crucial role in trying to prevent the unrest from escalating. But despite their efforts, misinformation spread online, falsely accusing Ali of involvement in the disorder.

Ali brought legal action against Armstrong and Spofforth over their specific social media posts.

The High Court in London heard that Armstrong published two posts on X that were viewed more than 3.1 million times, while Spofforth’s post received 216,000 views.

Samantha Thompson, representing Armstrong and Spofforth, told the court that both defendants “apologise to the claimant for the serious harm to his reputation and his distress.”

Speaking outside court, Ali said the false allegations had caused lasting harm despite being disproved. “The harm is already done. The smears leave their stench, even when proven to be false,” he said.

Armstrong admitted that he published two posts on his X account that “were incorrect and I have jointly made a statement in open Court in order to apologise to Mr Ali and correct the record.”

Spofforth also issued an apology on X, admitting her “statement was incorrect” and agreeing to pay compensation to vindicate Ali’s reputation.

“While buses burned, I stayed there to limit the damage”

The disorder broke out in Harehills in July 2024 when police reportedly responded to a disturbance related to children from a family being taken into care. A police car was overturned and a double-decker bus set ablaze as disorder spread through the night.

Ali, who had recently been elected Green Party councillor, was seen intervening to prevent further damage, including tackling a wheelie bin thrown towards the fire and confronting rioters to protect nearby homes.

“I was asked to attend the scene as disturbance broke out and remained outside until approximately 3am in the morning,” said Ali outside the court.

“During the night, I tried my absolute best to calm tensions and protect police officers. I stayed on the scene to calm rioters and to reassure residents.

“While buses burned, I stayed there to limit the damage, to limit the harm to my community. For my service to my community, I was not only accused of rioting but something I take even more seriously: my honesty was brought into question.

“The lies spread, people believed, and I was harassed. For days and weeks, my family lived in fear.”

He added that politicians of colour like himself faced “a level of suspicion that is ever present”, adding: “The smears leave their stench, even when proven to be false.”

Green Party leader Zack Polanski said: “My friend and colleague Mothin is a hero.

“He did exactly what an excellent councillor would do, working to calm down and heal division, and was praised across party lines at the time for doing so.

“His win today against right-wing smears is a win not only for him, but for all global majority politicians, whatever party they serve, in their fight against racist abuse.”

Ali spoke to Islam Channel about the incident during an interview with Islam Channel last year. You can watch the video below