Hashem Abedi, convicted for aiding the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, launched a violent assault on three prison officers at HMP Frankland in Durham, causing life-threatening injuries.
Abedi, 28, threw boiling cooking oil and used improvised weapons to stab the staff inside a specialist separation unit that houses some of Britain’s most dangerous inmates, according to the Prison Officers’ Association (POA).
One woman and two men were injured in the incident.
The female officer has since been discharged, while the others remain in hospital with serious burns and stab wounds.
Counter Terrorism Policing North East has taken over the investigation, supported by Durham Constabulary.
“This is an ongoing investigation which is in its early stages,” said CTP Commander Dom Murphy.
Abedi was sentenced to a minimum of 55 years in prison in 2020 for 22 counts of murder and other terror offences.
He was also convicted in 2022 for a separate attack on officers at HMP Belmarsh, receiving an additional term of nearly four years.
Following the latest assault, POA Chair Mark Fairhurst called for immediate restrictions on prisoner privileges in separation centres.
“Access to cooking facilities and dangerous items must be stopped. These prisoners need only basic entitlements,” he said.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood condemned the attack and pledged “the strongest possible punishment”.
Former governor John Podmore called it a “catastrophic security failure.”
The Ministry of Justice said violence in prisons “will not be tolerated.”
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ