// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
RNLI volunteer targeted online and branded 'traitor' after Portsmouth protests
An RNLI volunteer who was targeted with abuse online after being wrongly identified as having helped small boat migrants reach land in Portsmouth has told BBC Verify he is not a "traitor".
Neil and his colleagues were filmed wearing their lifesaving gear on a lifeboat by anti-migrant activists near the harbour on Sunday night, after hundreds of protesters descended on the area and shut down roads in response to dozens of asylum seekers being brought to shore.
The lifeboat crew's images were later used in posts accusing them of assisting what some users on X described as "an invasion", several of which also called for them to be "named and shamed".
These posts, which were collectively viewed at least two million times, also incorrectly claimed Neil and another colleague were two entirely different RNLI crew members whose names were available online.
Lifeboat volunteer branded 'traitor' after anti-migrant protests
Neil, whose face was visible in the video, told BBC Verify that the RNLI vessel was in the area to illuminate the beach "purely for the safety of the protesters" who had entered the sea. "I am not a traitor," he added.
Replies to the most widely shared posts featured wide-ranging abuse, including suggestions they should be refused service at pubs and to track down their families.
At least one post has since been removed for violating X's rules. The platform has been approached for comment.
Neil has been an RNLI volunteer for over a decade and said that despite the abuse he was undeterred and would continue to head out to rescue people when needed.
"I'll be back on the boat when the pager goes off," he said, adding: "It'd just be nice for those people who call me a traitor to know that I'm not a traitor. I'm just a volunteer crew."