Former Coronation Street star Qasim Akhtar is set to receive “substantial” damages from News Group Newspapers (NGN), the publisher of The Sun, following a successful defamation lawsuit. The actor, known for his role as Zeedan Nazir on the ITV soap, pursued legal action after the publication printed what he described as false and damaging allegations.
The High Court heard that The Sun, in an article published online and in print in November last year, wrongly claimed Akhtar had “teamed up with” and “backed” Islamic cleric Uthman ibn Farooq. Farooq was denied entry into the UK in 2025 due to his views. The article also falsely suggested Akhtar had become associated with extremism, radicalisation, and violence, had “moved to Pakistan,” and had undertaken gun training.
On Thursday, 23 July 2026, Akhtar's lawyer, Daniel Taylor, confirmed that NGN had agreed to pay a significant sum in damages, alongside covering the actor's legal expenses. Taylor stated that NGN acknowledged the article caused serious harm to Mr. Akhtar's reputation and considerable distress, impacting his family life and business, which he had to put on hold.
Andrew Wheelhouse, representing NGN, admitted that the article should never have been published and assured the court that the allegations would not be repeated. The Sun had previously issued an apology in May, stating it now accepts that “these allegations were entirely false and should never have been published.” The apology clarified that Akhtar has never endorsed or supported such views, condemns all forms of extremism, and has never been involved in radicalisation or firearms training.
Akhtar, 35, who played Zeedan Nazir from 2014 to 2018 and reprised the role for three years in 2021 before his exit in 2023, shared on Instagram last month that the past six months had been challenging. He explained that the false article, published after his pilgrimage, deeply affected his reputation, family, safety, and peace of mind. The Manchester-born actor, who has not taken on new acting work since leaving Coronation Street, added that he harboured “no malice” towards those involved, citing forgiveness as a core tenet of his religion.