Ali Harbi Ali, the radicalised Islamic State supporter who murdered Conservative MP Sir David Amess, has been sentenced to life in prison.
26-year-old Ali of Kentish Town, North London, secured a meeting with Sir David [pictured] at a constituency surgery in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex back in October, by pretending to be an NHS worker moving to the area.
Ali then stabbed the Southend West MP multiple times, killing him.
The attacker was sentenced at the Old Bailey on Wednesday after being convicted of Sir David’s murder and of preparing acts of terrorism. It had taken just 18 minutes on Monday for the jury to reach their verdict.
Prosecutors described Ali as a “bloodthirsty” killer who had spent years planning to murder a politician.
The IS fanatic told the court that he was seeking vengeance against MPs who had supported airstrikes on Syria and had planned to attack other parliamentarians, including incumbent Levelling Up secretary, Michael Gove, deputy PM Dominic Raab, and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, before targeting Sir David.
During the hearing, Judge Mr Justice Sweeney said that Ali showed “no remorse or shame for what he has done, quite the reverse.”
Indeed, the defendant insisted that he had no regrets about the murder, after Sir David had voted in favour of airstrikes in Syria in 2014 and 2015.
“If I thought I did anything wrong, I wouldn't have done it”, Ali said.
The judge added that the murder of Sir David had “struck at the heart of our democracy” and that his loss was “of national significance”.
After the sentencing was issued, Sir David’s family said in a statement via the Metropolitan Police that they felt “no elation” and that what had happened to the 69-year-old MP was “beyond evil”.
The statement read: “Our amazing husband and father has been taken from us in an appalling and violent manner. We shall never get over this tragedy.
“It breaks our heart to know that our husband and father would have greeted the murderer with a smile of friendship and would have been anxious to help. How sickening to think what happened next. It is beyond evil.”
Image taken from Wikimedia Commons
