Man jailed for life over failed knife attack at Israeli embassy in London

A man who tried to break into the Israeli embassy in London to carry out a knife attack has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 20 years.

Abdullah Albadri was carrying two knives when he attempted to get inside the embassy in Kensington on 28 April 2025, before being detained by armed police.

The 34-year-old from Kuwait had arrived in the UK on a small boat 16 days earlier.

He was previously found guilty by a majority verdict of preparation of terrorist acts and possession of two bladed articles.

Albadri's trial at the Old Bailey heard how he was motivated to plot the attack by the death of Palestinians in Gaza.

He first travelled to the UK on a small boat in August 2021 and applied for asylum but returned to France before a decision was made.

Albadri crossed the Channel again in April 2025 and was housed in a hotel in Basingstoke for three days, before being told he was not eligible for accommodation due to his outstanding asylum application.

He had been sleeping rough in the days leading up to the attempted attack, the court previously heard.

The 34-year-old was wearing a red and white traditional Arabic scarf wrapped around his head and sunglasses as he walked across London to the embassy.

He saluted in the direction of two nearby diplomatic protection officers before trying to scaled a fence outside the Israeli embassy, before being grabbed and tackled to the ground.

When he was searched, police found two 10cm-long blades and a handwritten copy of a verse titled "the benefit of martyrdom".

His trial heard how he told police: "I want to make a crime inside there. Why are you stopping me? Why are you stopping me from making crimes?"

During interview at a police station, he said he had wanted "to do something to stop the war".

On Monday, Mrs Justice Lambert KC sentenced Albadri to life in prison with a minimum term of 20 years.