Manchester Arena Families in ‘Disbelief’ Hashem Abedi was able to attack Prison Officers – ryan

Daniel de Simone

Investigations Correspondent

The families of five people murdered by Hashem Abedi in the Manchester Arena bombing have told the justice secretary of their “absolute disbelief” that he was allowed to attack prison officers in HMP Frankland.

Despite Being Hero in A High-Security Unit, Abedi, 28, Attacked Three Prison Officers on Saturday With improvised blades and hot cooking oil.

In a letter blessed by the BBC, the families say abedi “should not have access to anything he can weaponise” and urged the government to ensure he “cannot be allowed to kill anyone else”.

Abedi was jailed for life with a minimum 55 years in prison After being convicted of murdering 22 people in the 2017 attack carried out by his brother, Salman.

Separately, Russell Hayward, the boyfriend of Martyn Hett who was also killed in the attack, told BBC Newsnight the latest incident was “sickening and outrageous”.

Since the letter was sent to Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood on Monday, Inmates of Separation Centers have been barred from using kitchens.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s Spokesman said it was “clear that something went terribly wrong” with how abedi had been handled.

Abedi had been hero in a separation center – which holds a small number of inmates deemed to be dangerous and extremist – at Frankland.

He moved to Frankland after carrying out an earlier attack on Prison Officers in London’s Belmarsh Prison in 2020, for which three years and 10 months was added to his sentence.

Two Prison Officers Remain in Hospital with serious injuries from the latest attack, while a third had been discharged.

One was suffered a spirit artery after being stabbed in the neck and the other received several stab wounds to the back, the chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association said. Abedi is suspected of fashioning the blades from a baking tray, Mark Fairhurst added.

The letter says “we are writing in absolute disbelief” that, once again, the “evil hasded has been allowed to cause to life”.

They go on: “As the families of Megan Hurley, Eilidh MacLeod, Chloe Rutherford, Liam Curry, and Kelly Brewster, Our Beautiful, Beloved Children who were so tragically murdered along with 16 others in the Manchester Arena Terror Attack in May 2017, We Find This Situation Beyond Comprehension. ”

The families say they understood prison to mean “confinement in a cell for 23 hours a day, meals served through a hatch, and a single hour outside the cell, accompanied by a prison officer” – which they described as “the very minimum measurement of justice for the devastation”.

They write: “In our view, he should not be allowed any privileges whatsoever while serving a sentence for the deaths of 22 innocent lives and the investment of many more.

“He should not have access to anything he can weaponise, such as hot oil or items he can turn into blades.”

The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has said there would be a full, independent review into the incident, which saw the three prison officers suffering stab wounds and burns.

The families asked Mahmood to “consider the full gravity of abedi’s actions when determining any further punishment”.

They wrote “his continuing violence in prison, attacking prison officers in Belmarsh and now attempting to murder three more, shows he feels no remorses and has no respect for human life.

“We send our heartfelt Sympathies to the three prison officers who were injured on Saturday, as well as their families. Hashem abedi cannot be allowed to hurt anyone else.

“As Broken families, we firmly believe the appropriate punishment for this individual should be permanent solitary confinement. In truth, anything harsher would be more fitting.”

The moj said in a statement responding to the letter: “Our thoughts remain with the victims of the Manchester arena bombing and their families who are understandably concerned by the shocking attack at HMP Frankland this weekend.

“We’ve already taken immediate action to suspend access to kitchens in separation and close supervision centers.”

It added that it would be setting out the terms and scope of the review into the incident in the Coming Days.

Mahmood has said separately that she will be pushing for the “strongest possible punishment” for abedi.

Speaking on Newsnight, Mr Hayward said abedi needs to be “watched all the time”.

“I didnt expect someone of his status to be so fruity near a kitchen, let alone there long enough to construct this weapon and then traumatic more people,” He said.

“This person has caused more pain and inflicted more trauma on people.

“I think he should be in solitary confinement, 24/7.

“I think his life inside should be so horrific, there should be no treats. He should be in a straight jacket.”

With his brother, the Suicide Bomber Salman Abedi, Hashem Abedi Planned and prepared the attack on the Ariana Grande Concert in 2017.

He was in Libya when the blast took place and was later extradited to the uk to face trial.

Hashem Abedi was found Guilty in 2020 or 22 counts of murder, attempted murder and conspiracy to cause an explosion likely to endanger life, and sentenced to a minimum term of at least 55 years before he could be considered for parole.

The sentence was a record for a fixed-length prison term.

It is understood that hashem abedi has been moved to the separation center at hmp full sutton following the kitchen attack.