Abdullah Albadri, a 34-year-old stateless man, has been convicted by a jury at the Old Bailey of preparing terrorist acts and two counts of possessing a bladed article, following an attempt to break into the Israeli embassy in London armed with two knives. The majority verdict, reached after a trial lasting several weeks, found that Albadri’s actions were motivated by a desire to avenge the killing of children in Gaza.
On the day of the attack, CCTV cameras captured Albadri as he walked for more than an hour from the Kilburn district to the embassy, wearing dark sunglasses and a red and white headscarf that partially obscured his face. Just before 6 p.m., he was seen making a gesture with his right hand that resembled a salute, before suddenly jumping onto the eight-foot metal perimeter fence and attempting to scale it. Armed diplomatic protection officers who were guarding the site immediately reacted to detain him.
Two officers swiftly pulled Albadri to the ground, but PC Libby Chessor described in court how he had a strong grip on the railing, making it physically demanding to remove him. After he was subdued, a search uncovered two red-handled serrated knives concealed on his person, along with pieces of paper that included a handwritten note containing a religious verse about the spiritual rewards of martyrdom.
Police body-worn video footage played in court showed Albadri asking the officers why they were stopping him from committing crimes and suggesting they should have allowed him to get inside. He later stated that he wanted to deliver a message to stop the conflict in Gaza, saying that the war was killing children and that it was necessary to end the violence. He also indicated that he was carrying weapons, gesturing toward himself.
Trial evidence revealed that on the morning of the attack, Albadri sent an image of a handwritten note placed next to a knife to his mother. In accompanying messages, he declared his intention to act for Allah and to free himself from humiliation, and told her that he had chosen the path of martyrdom, urging her to be proud of him. His overarching motivation, he told police, was to avenge the death of children in Gaza.
Albadri is 34 years old and was born in Kuwait, but his nationality remains a subject of dispute. He belongs to the Bedoon tribe, a stateless community estimated to number over 100,000 who have long faced discrimination and are denied citizenship in Kuwait. His lack of a recognized nationality was a recurring theme during the legal proceedings.
Albadri’s immigration history shows he made an illegal entry into the United Kingdom by crossing the Channel in a small boat from France on 4 April 2025, just 16 days before the embassy incident. This was his second clandestine journey; he had previously arrived in a similar fashion in 2021. His application for asylum was processed and ultimately refused, leaving him as a failed asylum seeker with no legal right to remain.
After his asylum claim was rejected, Albadri was denied access to government accommodation and became homeless, sleeping rough on the streets of London. Analysis of his mobile phone revealed that he used the internet to search for the precise location of the Israeli embassy and for the phrase ‘suicide among enemies.’ Separately, he copied out a religious verse glorifying martyrdom, which was discovered among his possessions when he was arrested.
During his trial, Albadri denied the terrorism charge, asserting that he carried the knives solely for personal protection because he was living on the streets. He insisted he never had any intention of entering the embassy or harming anyone, and claimed that his reference to the knives as ‘weapons’ was only a sarcastic remark made in the heat of the moment.
Albadri also told the court that he had been imprisoned and mistreated in Kuwait for his activism in support of human rights. These claims were presented by his defence but were not independently verified during the trial.
Prosecutors argued that the evidence painted a clear picture of preparation for a terrorist attack, pointing to the combination of the two knives, the martyrdom notes, and the internet searches conducted in the days before the incident. PC Chessor gave her professional opinion that Albadri’s purposeful stride and the comments he made at the scene indicated his intent was to get over the fence and into the embassy.
After a trial that spanned several weeks, the jury at the Old Bailey deliberated for nearly 14 hours before returning a majority verdict. Albadri was remanded in custody and will be sentenced at a later date, with the judge warning he faces a substantial prison term. It remains unknown whether Albadri acted alone or was influenced by any extremist group, how he obtained the knives, and what his specific intended target inside the embassy was. His statelessness also leaves his long-term immigration status uncertain.