Hashem Abedi has been sentenced to at least 55 years in prison for murdering 22 people in the Manchester Arena bombing carried out by his brother, Salman, three years ago.
The Old Bailey court in central London heard that he was “just as guilty” as his brother, who died in the attack after detonating explosives in a suicide vest at the end of an Ariana Grande concert on May 22, 2017.
Abedi, 23, was convicted on 22 counts of murder in March for his role in plotting the attack.
He was also convicted on one count of attempted murder in relation to the survivors, and plotting to cause an explosion likely to endanger life.
Abedi’s two-day sentencing trial at the Old Bailey began on Wednesday, though he refused to leave his prison cell. He was not present in court after he sacked his legal team halfway through the trial.
The despair and desolation of the bereaved families has been palpable
Mr Justice Jeremy Baker told the court on Thursday that "the stark reality is, these were atrocious crimes. Large in scale, deadly in intent, appalling in their consequences".
"The despair and desolation of the bereaved families has been palpable," he added.
Abedi was then told he would spend at least 55 years in jail before he could be considered for parole. He was not given a life sentence with no minimum term because he was under 21 at the time of the murders – he was 20.
The younger Abedi brother had travelled to Libya, where his family is from, before the bombing.
Salman and Hashem Abedi were born in Manchester to a family of Libyan-born refugees who fled to the UK to escape the government of Muammar Qaddafi.
Abedi and his father were arrested in Tripoli by a local armed group called the Special Deterrence Force after the attack, but the father, Ramadan, was released soon after.
After two years of legal disputes Abedi was extradited to the UK last year.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson welcomed the sentence, saying it gave the public "an opportunity to reflect on the importance of tolerance, community and kindness".
"The Manchester Arena attack was a horrifying and cowardly act of violence which targeted children and families," Mr Johnson said.
"Those who were taken from us will never be forgotten, nor will the spirit of the people of Manchester who came together to send a clear message to the entire world that terrorists will never prevail."
The specs
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Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
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If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
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More on Quran memorisation:
Sri Lanka-India Test series schedule
- 1st Test India won by 304 runs at Galle
- 2nd Test Thursday-Monday at Colombo
- 3rd Test August 12-16 at Pallekele
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
