Manchester Arena bomber's brother Hashem Abedi confesses to plotting attack

Abedi was sentenced to at least 55 years in prison for murdering 22 people

Hashem Abedi confesses to plotting Manchester Arena attack. AFP

The brother of the Manchester Arena bomber, Hashem Abedi, has finally confessed to plotting the attack.

Hashem Abedi was sentenced to at least 55 years in prison in August for murdering 22 people in the Manchester Arena bombing carried out by his brother, Salman, three years ago.

Despite repeated denials, it was revealed on Monday that Abedi has finally confessed to the attack.

The Manchester Arena inquiry has heard two investigators visited Abedi in prison on October 22.

"During the course of that interview Hashem Abedi admitted he had played a full and knowing part in the Arena attack, so there is no doubt the prosecution of him was entirely well-found," the inquiry heard.

Abedi, 23, was convicted on 22 counts of murder in March for his role in plotting the attack.

He was also convicted on one count of attempted murder in relation to the survivors, and plotting to cause an explosion likely to endanger life.

The Old Bailey court in central London heard that he was “just as guilty” as his brother, who died in the attack after detonating explosives in a suicide vest at the end of an Ariana Grande concert on May 22, 2017.

The younger Abedi brother had travelled to Libya, where his family is from, before the bombing.

Salman and Hashem Abedi were born in Manchester to a family of Libyan-born refugees who fled to the UK to escape the government of Muammar Qaddafi.

Abedi and his father were arrested in Tripoli by a local armed group called the Special Deterrence Force after the attack, but the father, Ramadan, was released soon after.

After two years of legal disputes Abedi was extradited to the UK last year.

A public inquiry into the Manchester Arena bombing is examining the circumstances of the attack and if any opportunities to prevent it were missed.

It was established by Home Secretary Priti Patel in October last year and is expected to run until spring 2021.