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Twenty UK Base Stations Vandalised Over False 5G Coronavirus Claims - Reports

© REUTERS / CARL RECINEA telecommunications mast damaged by fire is seen in Sparkhill, masts have in recent days been vandalised amid conspiracy theories linking the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and 5G masts, Birmingham, Britain, April 6, 2020.
A telecommunications mast damaged by fire is seen in Sparkhill, masts have in recent days been vandalised amid conspiracy theories linking the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and 5G masts, Birmingham, Britain, April 6, 2020. - Sputnik International
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LONDON (Sputnik) - At least twenty cellular base stations across the UK have been torched or otherwise vandalised in the past few days over false claims that 5G networks could speed the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), The Guardian reported.

There have been a series of attacks on phone masts around Liverpool and the West Midlands. Due to the slow 5G rollout in the UK, many vandalised base stations did not in fact contain the 5G technology, causing the attackers to merely damage 3G and 4G equipment.

According to The Guardian, MobileUK, a group uniting the UK’s four key mobile networks, published an open letter addressed to customers asking for assistance in efforts to stop the attacks.

“We have experienced cases of vandals setting fire to mobile masts, disrupting critical infrastructure and spreading false information suggesting a connection between 5G and the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no scientific evidence of any link between 5G and coronavirus. Fact", the open letter says.

“Please help us to make this stop. If you witness abuse of our key workers please report it. If you see misinformation, please call it out. Your help will make a real difference", it says.

As of Monday, 5,373 people have died from the coronavirus disease in the United Kingdom and 51,608 people have contracted the disease since the start of the outbreak in the country, according to the UK Department of Health and Social Care.

Globally, more than 1.3 million people have been infected with the virus, among whom over 74,000 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics.

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