Manchester Arena families describe ‘horror’ that bomber’s brother was ALLOWED to leave the UK
‘He has taken the coward’s way out’: Grieving families of Manchester Arena terror attack describe ‘horror’ that brother of the bomber called to give evidence at public inquiry was ALLOWED to leave the UK a day after police stopped him at the airport
Families of Manchester Arena bombing ‘appalled’ that Ismail Abedi left the UKPolice using counter-terrorism powers interviewed Ismail Abedi, 28, at an airportIt caused Ismail to miss his intended flight from Manchester airport on August 28But he boarded a plane at the same airport a day later and has not returned He was called to give ‘highly important’ evidence at the inquiry into 2017 atrocity
<!–
<!–
<!–<!–
<!–
(function (src, d, tag){
var s = d.createElement(tag), prev = d.getElementsByTagName(tag)[0];
s.src = src;
prev.parentNode.insertBefore(s, prev);
}(“https://www.dailymail.co.uk/static/gunther/1.17.0/async_bundle–.js”, document, “script”));
<!–
DM.loadCSS(“https://www.dailymail.co.uk/static/gunther/gunther-2159/video_bundle–.css”);
<!–
Grieving families of the Manchester Arena terror attack have spoken of their ‘horror’ that the elder brother of suicide bomber Salman Abedi was allowed to leave the country just a day after police stopped him at airport.
Ismail Abedi, 28, flew out of the UK a day after he was stopped at Manchester Airport by police, the public inquiry into the May 2017 atrocity in which 22 people, many of them children, were murdered.
Officers used powers under counter-terrorism laws to question him for six hours, which caused him to miss his flight on August 28. However, his lawyers have said Ismail Abedi successfully boarded a plane at the same airport the next day and has not returned to the UK since.
Ismail Abedi had been called to give ‘highly important’ evidence on Thursday to explain how Salman, 22, and his other younger brother, Hashem, 24 – jailed for life after he aided the plot – became radicalised.
In a statement from eleven of the bereaved families, read outside court earlier today by Shane Smith from law firm Slater & Gordon, they said: ‘We are appalled to learn that Ismail Abedi left the country in August, having been stopped at the airport once before.
‘We want to put on record our horror that Ismail Abedi could be allowed to leave the country in the face of an upcoming appearance at a statutory inquiry which he had been ordered to attend.
‘We are shocked that this can have been allowed to happen and we note the inquiry are seeking urgent clarification on this.
‘Despite professing his innocence and claiming to disassociate himself from radical ideology and terrorism, he consciously chose not to attend today. A man who had genuinely rejected extremism would want to help the search for truth and would have been here today.
‘Ismail Abedi is clearly not such a person but has taken the coward’s way out.’
Officers using counter-terrorism powers interviewed Ismail Abedi (pictured), 28, which caused him to miss his intended flight from Manchester on August 28
The attack was committed by Salman Abedi (pictured), and aided by Hashem Abedi, 24, who was jailed for life last year
In a statement from eleven of the bereaved families, read outside court by Shane Smith from law firm Slater & Gordon, they said: ‘We are appalled to learn that Ismail Abedi left the country in August, having been stopped at the airport once before’
The inquiry into the attack which claimed 22 lives will next hear from the police and security services, with several witnesses scheduled to give evidence behind closed doors
Ismail Abedi was held by counter-terrorism police for a fortnight following his arrest in May 2017 before he was released – without charge – under investigation.
He denied any involvement in or knowledge of the bombing and stated he had played no part in the radicalisation of Salman Abedi.
In July, Ismail Abedi received a summons to attend the inquiry and was informed any objection needed to be received by mid-August.
When no response came, the inquiry’s solicitor e-mailed Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and requested to be notified as soon as possible if they received any information ‘to suggest that Ismail Abedi may not comply with the notice for example by leaving this jurisdiction’.
However, inquiry officials had no prior warning of Ismail Abedi’s plans as they were not informed by Greater Manchester Police of either airport visit until August 31.
Ahmed Taghdi, 29, a childhood friend of Salman Abedi, was arrested over the weekend after he attempted to leave the country following the granting of a High Court order last week which ordered him to attend.
He gave evidence on Thursday before he was later released from custody.
Counsel to the inquiry Paul Greaney QC told inquiry chairman Sir John Saunders it was ‘a matter of some doubt’ whether the High Court would have been prepared to take enforcement action nearly two months before Ismail Abedi was due to give evidence but the inquiry had lost the opportunity to pursue that route.
He said: ‘Whether something has gone wrong here in accordance with the existing structures of the law or whether the law was simply not adequate to deal with the situation we simply do not know at the moment.
‘A situation in which this important witness has been able to flee and effectively laugh in the face of the inquiry is one which should never be permitted to occur again.’
The inquiry heard Ismail Abedi told officials on the August 28 port stop that he intended to return to the UK, while Mr Greaney said a ‘self-serving and frankly disgraceful’ statement was received from his solicitor on Wednesday which ‘makes plain that Ismail Abedi’s failure to attend this hearing is entirely deliberate’.
The statement said Ismail Abedi ‘intends no disrespect to any of the parties, but he is unwilling to give evidence’.
It pointed out ‘hostile media coverage’ that he received had led to fears for his safety and that of his family.
The statement said: ‘The questions now asked by the inquiry are essentially the same as he was asked by the police. Any evidence he might give to the inquiry would be in public and open to cross-examination by other parties.
‘Requiring him to attend before the inquiry will place him and his family at further risk. After all the problems he has been through, he does not seek to engage with the public and he has nothing to add to the information he has given in interviews.’
Paul Greaney QC told chairman Sir John Saunders it is ‘a matter of some doubt’ whether the High Court would have been prepared to take enforcement action nearly two months before Ismail Abedi was due to give evidence but the inquiry has lost the opportunity to pursue that route.
He said: ‘That he (Ismail Abedi) has been able to thwart the wishes of the inquiry by getting on a plane is the subject of intense public concern and, moreover, anger among the bereaved families, and it has caused your inquiry team – and you – considerable frustration, to say the least.
‘There is considerable doubt about whether the police had a power to prevent him from leaving when he did.
‘They believe that they didn’t and there must be some doubt whether the High Court would have been prepared to take action.
‘It is not our intention to criticise anyone and it shouldn’t be assumed that Greater Manchester Police failed to pass on the information promptly when received by them.
‘And, in any event, we understand that they considered there was simply no power available to them to prevent his departure when he did, and they may well be right.
‘Whether something has gone wrong here in accordance with the existing structures of the law, or whether the law was simply not adequate to deal with the situation, we simply do not know at the moment.’
He added: ‘A situation in which this important witness has been able to flee and effectively laugh in the face of the inquiry is one which should never be permitted to occur again.’
The inquiry was told earlier this week Ismail was ‘effectively laughing in the face of the inquiry’ by being able to flee the country. Pictured: The aftermath of the attack
Abedi’s other brother, Hashem Abedi, was previously found guilty of 22 counts of murder relating to the attack
The inquiry heard Ismail Abedi told officials during the August 28 airport stop he intended to return to the UK.
Mr Greaney said a ‘self-serving and, frankly, disgraceful’ statement was received from his solicitor on Wednesday which ‘makes plain that Ismail Abedi’s failure to attend this hearing is entirely deliberate’.
Duncan Atkinson QC, representing some of the bereaved families, said: ‘The families have the very gravest of concerns and the most extreme sense of frustration that this has occurred, not only that so important a witness has flouted this inquiry but has shown such profound disrespect to the families in doing so.’
Sir John said he does not want to rush to judgment but would like a detailed explanation from GMP and what governed their actions or lack thereof.
He said: ‘I fully recognise the frustration that must be felt by the families. We all wanted him to be here to answer questions.
‘Whether he would have been able to claim privilege against self-incrimination, I have no idea, but the reality is we have lost the opportunity to do that, so I recognise the frustrations.’
