Martin Hibbert and his daughter, severely injured in the Manchester Arena bombing, won a lawsuit against a YouTuber who falsely claimed the attack was staged and secretly filmed them. The YouTuber, Richard Hall, spread conspiracy theories across his 16-million-view YouTube channel, including claims that the Hibberts were “crisis actors.” The court condemned Hall’s actions as gravely unacceptable, awarding the family damages. Hibbert now advocates for “Eve’s Law,” a new criminal offense protecting victims of tragedy from online harassment by conspiracy theorists, and for improved legal access for such victims.
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Abdalraouf Abdallah, a childhood friend of Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi, has been released from prison after serving his full sentence. Despite a September Parole Board denial citing his high risk to the public and propensity for radicalizing others, his release was mandated upon sentence expiration. The Manchester Arena Inquiry implicated Abdallah in Abedi’s radicalization, though not in the attack itself. While participating in deradicalization programs, assessments deemed him a continued high risk due to persistent extremist views.
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Martin Hibbert and his daughter, Eve, who were severely injured in the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, were awarded 45,000 pounds ($58,000) in a harassment suit against Richard Hall, a former television producer who falsely claimed the tragedy was a hoax. Hall, who produced videos, a film, and a book promoting his conspiracy theory, was found by the court to have engaged in “negligent, indeed reckless, abuse of media freedom.” The court ruled that Hall’s actions were a blatant disregard for the “obvious, tragic reality” of the bombing, which killed 22 people and injured hundreds more. The Hibberts’ victory, while modest in financial terms, is significant for publicly discrediting Hall’s false claims and preventing further harassment.
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John Q. Hosedrinker