The brother of the Manchester Arena bomber has been charged with attempting to murder three prison officers during a violent incident at a high-security jail.
Hashem Abedi, 28, is accused of attacking four officers at HMP Frankland, County Durham, on 11 April. Three of the officers were taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Abedi, who is serving a minimum 55-year sentence for helping his brother plan the 2017 suicide bombing that killed 22 people, also faces a charge of unauthorised possession of a knife. The attack is alleged to have involved makeshift weapons and cooking oil.
Prosecutors will argue the offences were carried out with a terrorist motive. The charges follow a joint investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing North East, Durham Constabulary and prison authorities.
Abedi, who was housed in the prison’s separation unit at the time, has since been moved from the facility. He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 18 September.
The Ministry of Justice has ordered a full independent review into the incident, which sparked anger among survivors and families of the bombing victims.
Abedi’s older brother, Salman, detonated a homemade device in his rucksack as fans left an Ariana Grande concert on 22 May 2017, killing 22 people and injuring more than 1,000.
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