Latest news with #AhmadMamdouhAlIbrahim
BBC News
07-05-2025
- BBC News
Huddersfield stabbing: Murder accused appears in court
Murder accused in court over fatal stabbing Ahmad Mamdouh Al Ibrahim died from a single stab wound to his neck A man accused of murdering a 16-year-old boy who was fatally stabbed in Huddersfield has appeared in court. Ahmad Mamdouh Al Ibrahim died in hospital after being stabbed in the neck during an incident in Ramsden Street on 3 April. Alfie Franco, 20, of The Crescent, in Kirkburton, is charged with murdering the teenager and possessing a knife in a public place. During a hearing at Leeds Crown Court his trial date, which was initially set for 2 October, was moved to 6 October.
ITV News
07-05-2025
- ITV News
Man denies murder of Syrian refugee stabbed to death in Huddersfield street
A man has denied the murder of a teenage refugee who was stabbed to death in a street in Huddersfield. Syrian Ahmad Mamdouh Al Ibrahim, 16, died after being stabbed in the neck in Ramsden Street, Huddersfield, on Thursday 3 April. Appearing at Leeds Crown Court via video link on Wednesday, 20-year-old Alfie Franco pleaded not guilty to murder. A trial date was set for 6 October. Ahmad had come to the UK after being injured in a bombing in Homs in war-torn Syria after being injured in a bombing. He had recently moved to Huddersfield from the South Wales area. In a tribute, his family said he "believed in the values of human rights, safety, and dignity" and had dreamed of becoming a doctor." "He had just begun settling into his new life with his uncle, adjusting to a new language, a new home, and a future he was excited to build. "Ahmad was kind, gentle, and carried so much promise. Losing him has left an unimaginable emptiness in our hearts. We never thought that the place he saw as a safe haven would be where his life would end." A fundraiser launched after Ahmad's death raised more than £15,000 to pay for his body to be repatriated to Syria.
The National
16-04-2025
- The National
Burial fund for stabbed Syrian teenager hits target to take body home
The body of Syrian teenager who was stabbed to death in the UK will be returned home after a campaign raised £15,000 for his family. The mother of 16-year-old Ahmad Mamdouh Al Ibrahim had requested that his body be laid to rest in Syria, after he was killed on April 3 in Huddersfield, northern England. He had moved to the town in Yorkshire to live with his uncle only two weeks before his death, after living at an immigration centre in Wales. Ahmad was a 'kind and gentle' teenager who had dreams of becoming a doctor, his family has said. He had fled his homeland after being injured by shrapnel during the bombing of Homs. A fundraising page on the JustGiving website was started by Maneer Siddique, who owns a tailoring business in Huddersfield. He originally asked for £13,000 but the amount raised has passed £15,500. 'Ahmad didn't get the chance to experience the safety and future he came here hoping for. Helping grant this final wish of his mother is the least we can do,' said Mr Siddique In his appeal for donations, he said: 'Ahmad's mother has requested that her son be laid to rest in Syria, close to his family, his home, and his roots.' The appeal was started 'with the permission of Ahmad's uncle, to help cover the costs of repatriating his body to Syria and ensuring he receives a dignified burial surrounded by loved ones'. Funeral prayers for Ahmad were held at Huddersfield's Omar mosque last Friday, and were attended by around 500 people. His body will be flown from Heathrow to Damascus next Tuesday evening, accompanied by two relatives, and then taken to Homs for burial. Alfie Franco, 20, appeared at Leeds Crown Court last week charged with Ahmad's murder. He was remanded in custody with a trial set for October 2. Officer are working with Ahmad's family and are investigating the attack, said West Yorkshire Police. In a statement issued through the force, his family said: 'Ahmad fled war-torn Homs, Syria, after being injured in a bombing He chose to come to the UK because he believed in the values of human rights, safety and dignity. The family added that Ahmad had begun to settle into his new life in the UK with his uncle and was 'adjusting to a new language, a new home and a future he was excited to build'. 'Losing him has left an unimaginable emptiness in our hearts,' the statement said. 'We never thought that the place he saw as a safe haven would be where his life would end. Our only wish now is to lay him to rest in his homeland, Syria. Thank you for helping us honour his memory.'
The Guardian
10-04-2025
- The Guardian
Boy, 16, killed in Huddersfield had lived there for only two weeks, uncle says
A teenage Syrian refugee who was stabbed to death in Huddersfield last Thursday had lived in the town for only two weeks before the attack and was out making friends on the day he was killed, his family has said. Ahmad Mamdouh Al Ibrahim, 16, was stabbed in the neck in the town centre – the second time he had been there – while being shown around by his cousin, his uncle told the Guardian. A 20-year-old man, Alfie Franco, of Kirkburton, near Huddersfield, appeared in court on Friday charged with his murder and was remanded in custody before a further hearing next month. Ahmad's uncle, who he was living with in Huddersfield, said he had encouraged the boy to go out and make friends his own age after spending a lot of time with the family during Ramadan. In the hours before his death, Ahmad had asked to see Kirklees College, where he had been enrolled, and his uncle had promised to take him later that day, he said. In the meantime his cousin offered to show him around Huddersfield town centre, including a new supermarket that sells Asian and Arabic food, and the market. 'He was trying to make a friend, because he didn't have friends here. I said to him, you have to go out into the town centre to know [where everything is], to know where you can go shopping … plus, you're going to make friends,' said his uncle who asked to remain anonymous. He had spent Ramadan and Eid with his uncle's family, laughing and joking with his younger cousins. Photos taken at the time show a happy, smiling boy surrounded by loved ones. 'He'd only spent a few days with my kids but they loved him so much because he was a very nice boy, very lovely and kindly with the kids. He played with them and gave them a lot of time,' he said, adding that he had still not had the courage to tell his children, who are all under 10, that Ahmad had died. They had been writing letters to him in hospital. His uncle, who is Ahmad's father's brother, said he had been upset to see false and malicious rumours being spread online that his nephew was a drug dealer. 'He was only 16,' he said tearfully. 'He was a good boy. He went from a nice family [in Syria] to a nice family [in the UK]. 'We've been eight years here – we've not had trouble, not had a problem. We go from work to home, school, that's it,' said his uncle, who works in a factory having rebuilt his life after fleeing the war in Syria. 'And that's what Ahmad did as well,' he said, adding that Ahmad had left behind his father, who works as a taxi driver, his mother, and three sisters in his home town of Homs. Ahmad was loved by his schoolmates and teachers back home and had achieved the top maths grades in his class. He loved school, the uncle said, 'that's why he came here. He wished to be a doctor, to save people.' The teenager had been living in a refugee centre in Swansea where he was well liked, his uncle said, from his arrival in the UK in October last year until 20 March, when he moved to Huddersfield. The staff at the centre and Ahmad's social worker had contacted the uncle saying they were heartbroken Ahmad had been killed. 'They were crying for Ahmad, they said they loved him.' He said staff had previously told him how they had 'never seen him happy like this' when they called at Eid. His family had been left feeling frightened, afraid of knocks on the door. 'I've been [in Huddersfield] eight years. I thought it was a safe place. I didn't worry before, like now.' However, he praised the community for rallying round for a child they had never met, raising money and leaving flowers at the scene. A fundraising page to help pay for Ahmad's body to be repatriated to Syria has raised more than £10,000. It was set up by Maneer Siddique, who owns a tailoring business in the town. Like many who have donated and offered other support, he said he did not know Ahmad or his family. Siddique said: 'You would want help if you were in a dire situation, so why shouldn't you help somebody else in a dire situation?'
The National
08-04-2025
- Politics
- The National
Teenager stabbed to death in 'safe haven' UK had fled Syria after bombing injury
A Syrian teenager stabbed to death in the UK had escaped the war in his homeland after being injured in a bombing in Homs, his family have said. The family of Ahmad Mamdouh Al Ibrahim, 16, paid tribute to the 'kind and gentle' teenager, who had dreams of becoming a doctor. A man has appeared in court charged with his murder in Huddersfield on April 3. 'Ahmad fled war-torn Homs, Syria, after being injured in a bombing,' his family said in a statement issued through West Yorkshire Police. 'He chose to come to the UK because he believed in the values of human rights, safety and dignity. He was full of hope and dreamt of becoming a doctor, wanting to heal others after all he had endured.' The family added that Ahmad had begun to settle into his new life in the UK with his uncle and was 'adjusting to a new language, a new home and a future he was excited to build'. 'Ahmad was kind, gentle and carried so much promise. Losing him has left an unimaginable emptiness in our hearts,' the statement said. 'We never thought that the place he saw as a safe haven would be where his life would end. Our only wish now is to lay him to rest in his homeland, Syria. Thank you for helping us honour his memory.' Homs was a key battleground in the Syrian civil, after residents responded to the call to overthrow former president Bashar Al Assad in 2011. Regime forces were driven out of much of the city a year later. Government forces responded by laying siege to the city for two years. The fighting left whole areas destroyed before rebel forces withdrew. The city passed fully into government control in 2017, but was retaken by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham in early December, as the group led rebel forces to Damascus. Alfie Franco, 20, appeared at Leeds Crown Court on Tuesday charged with Ahmad's murder. He was remanded in custody with a trial date set for October 2. Police are working with Ahmad's family and are investigating the attack, West Yorkshire Police added.
