Hashem Abedi—the brother of Manchester Arena suicide bomber Salman Abedi—has pleaded not guilty to attempting to murder prison officers during a violent attack inside HMP Frankland.
Abedi, 28, was charged with three counts of attempted murder, one of assault causing actual bodily harm, and one of possessing offensive weapons inside a prison.
The convicted bombmaker is accused of attacking prison officers with a homemade weapon and boiling liquid while shouting “Allahu Akbar”—God is the greatest—during the incident. Prosecutors said the assault, which took place on April 12th this year, was motivated by terrorism.
Abedi‘s targets were four prison officers at the high-security institution where he is already serving a life sentence for his role in enabling his brother to carry out the 2017 Islamist bombing of an Ariana Grande concert that killed 22 people, including multiple children.
Abedi appeared via video link from HMP Belmarsh, accompanied by five prison officers wearing riot masks and protective body armour. He was dressed in a grey prison tracksuit and confirmed his name and date of birth, also stating that he did not wish to have legal representation.
