Manchester Arena attack: Jury 'must put emotion aside'

Hashem Abedi has denied 22 counts of murder

Jurors were told to put emotion to one side as they prepare to retire and consider their verdicts in the trial of the Manchester Arena bomb plot suspect.

Hashem Abedi, 22, is accused of helping his brother Salman plan the 2017 blast at the Manchester Arena.

Judge Mr Justice Jeremy Baker urged the Old Bailey jury to deliberate "with dispassion and objectivity".

Hashem denies murder, attempted murder and conspiring to cause explosions but has "withdrawn" from the case.

Twenty-two people were killed when Salman detonated a homemade bomb on 22 May 2017 at an Ariana Grande pop concert.

Prosecutors said the Manchester-born brothers "stood shoulder to shoulder" in the alleged plot, with the younger sibling "just as guilty of murder" as the bomber himself.

During his summing up of the case, Mr Justice Baker told the jury to put aside any "sympathy for the family and friends" of the victims and survivors.

Top (left to right): Lisa Lees, Alison Howe, Georgina Callender, Kelly Brewster, John Atkinson, Jane Tweddle, Marcin Klis, Eilidh MacLeod - Middle (left to right): Angelika Klis, Courtney Boyle, Saffie Roussos, Olivia Campbell-Hardy, Martyn Hett, Michelle Kiss, Philip Tron, Elaine McIver - Bottom (left to right): Wendy Fawell, Chloe Rutherford, Liam Allen-Curry, Sorrell Leczkowski, Megan Hurley, Nell Jones

"The death of anyone is obviously a sad event so too is the suffering of serious injury - the more so when the death and injury takes place prematurely in circumstances such as these," he said.

"However, as I am sure you will appreciate, emotions are likely to obscure rather than clarify one's ability to discern the truth, which is your task in this case," he added.

He told the jury it was "important" for them "to put any such feelings to one side for the time being and to undertake [their] task with dispassion and objectivity".

Hashem was not present in court on Friday, having sacked his legal team and withdrawing from the court process.

The judge will continue his summing up on Monday.