ISLAMABAD: British publication Daily Mail on Thursday publicly apologized to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for publishing an article by journalist David Rose that accused him of embezzling UK aid meant for earthquake victims.
In a notice published on its website, Daily Mail said that it had published a report on July 14, 2019.
In the report, Shehbaz had been accused of embezzling funds provided to Pakistan for earthquake relief.
The report was based on documents shared by Pakistan’s apex anti-graft watchdog National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
Daily Mail had claimed that millions of pounds of British public money had been pilfered out of £500 million provided to Punjab by the British Department for International Development (DFID) for the victims of Pakistan’s 2005 earthquake.
In its apology, the Daily Mail said that the NAB had never accused Shehbaz of any wrongdoing.
“We are pleased to make this clear and apologize to Mr Sharif for this error.”
Shehbaz had also been in litigation against Daily Mail over the 2019 article.
In 2020, PM Shehbaz, the then-opposition leader, had filed a case in the London High Court against the British daily and its reporter David Rose for publishing a “fabricated and defamatory” report against him in July 2019.
He claimed damages as well as an injunction restraining the newspaper from publishing ‘defamatory words’.
“It was a fabricated and defamatory story which was published in the Daily Mail. It was a part of propaganda launched by [then prime minister] Imran Niazi against the PML-N in the name of sham accountability,” he said while addressing a news conference in London in January that year.
Earlier this year, the court ruled in Shehbaz’s favor.
But that verdict was appealed and the appeals court in November sought a statement from Shehbaz.
The prime minister’s legal reply failed to comply with the requirements set by the court, Shehbaz could see his case thrown out and even cover legal costs of Daily Mail.
The next hearing was set for December 13.
