The dispute dates back to May 2019, when Ibrahim was held at HMP Birmingham and prescribed codeine for knee pain.
Dahir Ibrahim, and a CCTV image of him (Image: SWNS)
A Somali serial rapist serving a life sentence has won a High Court battle against an NHS trust over how his painkillers were handed out in prison during Ramadan. Dahir Ibrahim, who raped five women in Birmingham in separate attacks, claimed he was discriminated against because prison healthcare staff would not allow him to take prescribed codeine away from the medication hatch during the Muslim holy month.
The 41-year-old argued that the arrangements meant he had to choose between taking his medication during daylight hours and observing the daytime fast. Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Trust challenged an earlier ruling in Ibrahim’s favour, but the High Court dismissed its appeal in a judgment issued on September 29.
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The dispute dates back to May 2019, when Ibrahim was held at HMP Birmingham and prescribed codeine for knee pain, reported the Mail.
Under the prison’s arrangements, inmates had to attend a medication hatch at set times in the morning and afternoon. Codeine was excluded from the medication packs that some prisoners were allowed to take into their cells for consumption overnight because of its psychoactive effects and the risk of misuse.
When Ibrahim attended the hatch on May 6, he was told he could not take the medication away and would have to swallow it under a nurse’s supervision.
He refused. The same situation arose over the following two days, before he saw a prison GP on May 9 and was given paracetamol as a temporary alternative.
Dahir Ibrahim is incarcerated at HMP Birmingham (Image: Getty)
Ibrahim subsequently claimed he suffered withdrawal symptoms after missing his codeine.
He brought legal proceedings against the trust, alleging breaches of his human rights, including freedom of religion and protection from discrimination.
In 2024, Birmingham County Court ruled that the dispensing policy amounted to indirect religious discrimination. The trust appealed, arguing that providing routine medication outside normal hours would be impractical in a prison operating under strict security and staffing constraints.
Its deputy head of healthcare, Gemma McKone, argued that arranging supervised medication outside the usual timetable would be difficult when tens of thousands of prescriptions were administered under supervision each month.
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However, Mr Justice Soole rejected the appeal, highlighting the failure to consider alternative arrangements for Ibrahim’s medication.
The judge said: “At the time in question, the Trust and its employees had given no thought to the possibility of providing Mr Ibrahim with his prescribed medication by any alternative procedure.”
The ruling was based on the particular circumstances of the case. The judge rejected the trust’s argument that the original decision could open the floodgates to further claims.
No compensation order was made, although the case is expected to inform future decisions about prison healthcare.
Nigel Farage announces bombshell deportation plan for Afghan and Palestinian migrants
Nigel Farage will announce hardline migration plans next week.
Nigel Farage announces bombshell deportation plan for Afghan and Palestinian migrants (Image: Getty)
Reform UK said it will deport anyone who arrived under Shabana Mahmood’s refugee resettlement scheme if the party is elected. Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, said he will “immediately end” the scheme when he announces the policy next Monday, along with several other immigration plans. The Home Secretary reopened the UK Resettlement Scheme for new referrals on September 28, to provide “genuine refugees a safe and legal route to the UK”. Around a quarter of referrals will be for Afghan women and girls and Palestinian refugees, fleeing war and persecution, Labour said.
However, speaking to The Telegraph ahead of his speech, Mr Farage said: “Britain is not obligated to take in more migrants, and under a Reform government, these people will not be able to stay.” His severe plans will also revoke residents’ right to remain if they are not considered to be in danger in their home country.
Nations from across the world would be affected. Migration Observatory estimates suggest between 622,000 and 820,000 non-EU citizens had settlement status at the end of 2024, which did not include the approximately 4million EU citizens who were living in the UK before January 2021, and hold settled or pre-settled status.
Mr Farage will also announce a review of Britain’s Afghan resettlement schemes and pledge to publish their costs next week. This was designed to resettle Afghan citizens who worked for or with the UK Government in exposed roles, as well as vulnerable individuals.
Reform has also escalated plans first announced in February for Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Eritrea, Sudan and Somalia. Mr Farage said Reform would impose tariffs on the countries if they refused to take back illegal immigrants and foreign criminals residing in the UK, speaking to The Times.
The party originally planned to impose strict visa bans for people legally seeking to visit the UK from these countries. Reform said it believes that tariffs may be more effective. The proposed list includes several of the countries with the largest numbers of asylum seekers in the UK in recent years.
Reform has plummeted in popularity after controversy surrounding its funding (Image: Getty)
The party will also conduct an audit of migration figures and publish a detailed breakdown of the number of people who have arrived in Britain since 2010, by nationality and route of entry.
Channel crossings have fallen this year. They reached a peak of around 46,000 in 2022. In the year ending June 2026, the number of detected arrivals fell to around 33,000.
Support for Reform has plummeted amid controversy over the party’s funding and a recovery in Labour’s popularity thanks to Andy Burnham’s arrival at Number 10. The party has fallen to second place in most polls, its lowest rating since December 2024.
