Abdul Ezedi: ‘Lefty lawyers’ criticised after documents reveal why Clapham attacker was granted asylum
A minister has hit out at “credulous clerics” and “lefty lawyers” after documents seen by Sky News revealed how the Clapham chemical attacker Abdul Ezedi was granted asylum after he was baptised.
Science minister Andrew Griffith said Ezedi, who attacked a woman and two children with an alkali in London earlier this year, should not have been able to enter the UK illegally and remain here after being vouched for by a priest.
Home Secretary James Cleverly has summoned the “vast majority” of Christian churches to “relay the potential damage” of “being seen, rightly or wrongly, as acting against the integrity of our asylum system, where Christian conversion has been brought up at appeal”, a source close to him said.
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Minister blames ‘credulous clerics’ and ‘loophole lawyers’
Ezedi, who was from Afghanistan, had twice been refused asylum by the Home Office after arriving in the UK on the back of a lorry in 2016.
The second refusal was overturned by a judge in an appeal hearing in October 2020 because of Ezedi’s claim to have converted to Christianity. A suggestion that he would be at risk of persecution if he returned to Afghanistan was supported by a vicar.
A huge search operation was launched for Ezedi after the attack on 31 January, with CCTV images showing serious injuries to his face. His body was recovered from the River Thames a few weeks later.
Mr Griffith told Kay Burley on Breakfast: “We can’t run an asylum system based on credulous clerics and lefty lawyers.
“That is why we are fundamentally reforming it.”
Challenged on what he meant by “credulous clerics”, Mr Griffith said: “To be credulous is not to be, you know, diligent and inquiring and accept that this could be something that is being faked for that purpose.
“And we know, we know about this particular case, but we do know that there are loophole lawyers that are grooming people…”
Mr Griffith initially stuck by his use of the word “grooming” before agreeing that “coaching” was a “better word”.
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Abdul Ezedi
A source close to the home secretary said the consequences of Ezedi having his asylum case approved were “appalling”.
“That reputational risk is only amplified by the fact some who denied knowledge of Ezedi at the time had in fact known of him within their church, and had supported and vouched for him.”
As well as the documents coming to light, Sky News has also obtained pictures of Ezedi, who was also a convicted sex offender, being baptised in church.
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Mr Griffith highlighted how Ezedi had not originally claimed asylum on the grounds of his religion and said the government’s Safety of Rwanda Bill – which will see certain migrants deported to the east African country – would help prevent similar cases arising again.
Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “The home secretary must explain why his department failed to remove Ezedi from the UK in the two years after his first asylum claim was rejected – particularly after he was convicted of sexual offences.”
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Kemi Badenoch accuses Sir Keir Starmer of ‘lying’ about Peter Mandelson prior to sacking him
Kemi Badenoch has accused Sir Keir Starmer of “lying to the whole country” about what he knew regarding Peter Mandelson’s correspondence with Jeffrey Epstein.
Lord Mandelson was this week stripped of his position as ambassador to the US amid fresh scrutiny over his years-long friendship with the convicted paedophile.
The prime minister initially defended the Labour peer but removed him from his post on Thursday after newly seen emails revealed he sent messages of support to Epstein even as he faced jail for sex offences in 2008.
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Lord Mandelson – the unanswered questions
The Times has now reported that Downing Street and the Foreign Office were aware of the emails on Tuesday – a day before Sir Keir gave Lord Mandelson his backing at Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs).
In a post on X, Conservative leader Ms Badenoch wrote: “Looks like the Prime Minister and Labour MPs spent the week lying to the whole country about what they knew regarding Mandelson’s involvement with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.”
She continued: “If No 10 had those emails for 48 hours before acting, it means he lied at PMQs and ministers lied again about new additional information. These are yet more errors of judgment.
“The Prime Minister has very serious questions to answer. The only way to clear this up is full transparency about who knew what, and when.”
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Sources said Sir Keir was not aware of the contents of the emails when he told MPs he had “confidence” in Lord Mandelson.
A media enquiry outlining details of the messages between Lord Mandelson and Epstein was sent to the Foreign Office on Tuesday, and passed on to Number 10.
Sir Oliver Robbins, the permanent under-secretary at the Foreign Office, asked Lord Mandelson about the emails on Tuesday, but did not receive a response until the following day.
Sir Keir is understood not to have been aware of the contents of the emails until Wednesday evening.
Speaking to Sky News, one Labour MP has called for more information on what happened behind closed doors at No 10 this week.
Jo White, MP for Bassetlaw, in Nottinghamshire, said: “We cannot move on until we find out how he [Sir Keir] was not briefed properly before PMQs.”
“What he needs to do now is get on top and sort out this mess,” she said. “Suspend the whip from Peter Mandelson and expel him from the party, then have a transparent enquiry about what went wrong at No.10.”
This came as Sir Keir enjoyed some time away from Downing Street.
The prime minister was on Saturday pictured watching Arsenal face Nottingham Forest in a Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal fan Sir Keir cheered on his side as they won 3-0. Pic: Reuters
Lord Mandelson’s exit came after less than a fortnight after another high-profile loss for the Labour government, as Angela Rayner was forced to quit as deputy prime minister and deputy Labour leader over her tax affairs.
As Sir Keir has faced a scandal-hit start to the month, a growing number of Labour MPs have begun calling his leadership into question.
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What we know about Mandelson-Epstein relationship
Lucy Powell, who is running to replace Ms Rayner as Labour’s deputy leader, has called for a “change of culture” at Downing Street.
“We’ve got a bit of a groupthink happening at the top, that culture of not being receptive to interrogation, not being receptive to differing views,” she told The Guardian newspaper.
Meanwhile, senior Labour MP Emily Thornberry has written to the new foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, demanding answers about the vetting process for UK diplomats in the wake of Lord Mandelson’s sacking.
A man has admitted arson after a major fire at an MP’s constituency office.
Joshua Oliver, 28, pleaded guilty to starting the fire which destroyed the office of Labour MP Sharon Hodgson, at Vermont House in Washington, Tyne and Wear.
The fire also wrecked a small charity for people with very rare genetic diseases and an NHS mental health service for veterans.
The guilty plea was entered at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court on the basis that it was reckless rather than intentional.
Hodgson, who has been an MP since 2005, winning her seat again in 2019. Pic: Reuters
The Crown did not accept that basis of plea.
Oliver, of no fixed address, had been living in a tent nearby, the court heard.
Northumbria Police previously said it was “alerted to a fire at a premises on Woodland Terrace in the Washington area” shortly after 12.20am on Thursday.
“Emergency services attended and no one is reported to have been injured in the incident,” it added.
Drone footage from the scene showed extensive damage to the building.
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A spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service said: “Our prosecutors have worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring the case to trial and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.
“We have worked closely with Northumbria Police as they carried out their investigation.”
Oliver was remanded in custody and will appear at Newcastle Crown Court on Tuesday, 14 October.
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