LONDON (AP) — A teen charged with killing three girls and wounding 10 other people in a stabbing rampage at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in England this summer remained silent in court Wednesday as not guilty pleas were entered on his behalf.
Axel Rudakubana, 18, who has refused to speak in each court appearance, was read the charges of three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and additional charges related to possessing the poison ricin and for having an al-Qaida manual.
Justice Julian Goose ordered a clerk to enter the pleas in Liverpool Crown Court as Rudakubana stayed mum during a video appearance from a London prison where he is held.
His trial is scheduled for Jan. 20.
It was the first time in a court appearance that the teen did not pull his sweatshirt collar over his nose to obscure his face.
He appeared to smile as an officer confirmed that the court proceeding could be heard at the prison. The judge noted that Rudakubana was not responding. He swayed from side to side as the charges were read and bent forward at one point.
Rudakubana was charged in August with murdering three girls — Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Bebe King, 6 — and stabbing 10 other people on July 29 in the seaside town of Southport in northern England.
The attack at a small dance and yoga studio on the first day of summer vacation sparked rioting across England and Northern Ireland fueled by far-right activists that lasted a week.
The violence, which injured more than 300 police officers and led to fiery attacks on hotels housing migrants, began after Rudakubana — then unnamed –- was falsely identified as an asylum seeker who had recently arrived in Britain by boat.
Rudakubana was born in Wales to Rwandan immigrants.
More than 1,200 people were arrested for the disorder that lasted a week and hundreds have been jailed for up to nine years in prison.
A report released Wednesday was critical of police for failing to recognize the threat of violent disorder after a number of smaller incidents across the U.K. in the previous two years.
The report from the Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services said there were also lapses in gathering intelligence from social media and the dark web.
Rudakubana was charged in October with additional counts for production of a biological toxin, ricin, and possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism for having the manual in a document on his computer.
Police have said the stabbings have not been classified as acts of terrorism because the motive is not yet known.
FILE - Tributes are seen outside the Town Hall in Southport, England, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024 after three young girls were killed in a knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club the week before. (AP Photo/Darren Staples, File)
FILE - Police officers watch members of the public outside the Town Hall in Southport, England, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024 after three young girls were killed in a knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club the week before. (AP Photo/Darren Staples, File)
FILE - People look at the floral tribute at the Atkinson arts centre in Southport, England, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024 after three young girls were killed in a knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club the week before. (AP Photo/Darren Staples, File)
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — The Iranian rial on Wednesday fell to its lowest level in history, losing more than 10% of value since Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election in November and signaling new challenges for Tehran as it remains locked in the wars raging in the Middle East.
The rial traded at 777,000 rials to the dollar, traders in Tehran said, down from 703,000 rials on the day Trump won.
Iran’s Central Bank has in the past flooded the market with more hard currencies in an attempt to improve the rate.
In an interview with state television Tuesday night, Central Bank Gov. Mohammad Reza Farzin said that the supply of foreign currency would increase and the exchange rate would be stabilized. He said that $220 million had been injected into the currency market.
The currency plunged as Iran ordered the closure of schools, universities, and government offices on Wednesday due to a worsening energy crisis exacerbated by harsh winter conditions. The crisis follows a summer of blackouts and is now compounded by severe cold, snow and air pollution.
Despite Iran’s vast natural gas and oil reserves, years of underinvestment and sanctions have left the energy sector ill-prepared for seasonal surges, leading to rolling blackouts and gas shortages.
In 2015, during Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, the rial was at 32,000 to $1. On July 30, the day that Iran’s reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian was sworn in and began his term, the rate was 584,000 to $1.
Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the accord in 2018, sparking years of tensions between the countries that persist today.
Iran’s economy has struggled for years under crippling international sanctions over its rapidly advancing nuclear program, which now enriches uranium at near weapons-grade levels.
Pezeshkian, elected after a helicopter crash killed hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi in May, came to power on a promise to reach a deal to ease Western sanctions.
Tensions still remain high between the nations, 45 years after the 1979 U.S. Embassy takeover and the 444-day hostage crisis that followed. Before the revolution, the rial traded at 70 for $1.
Iran remains deeply involved in the Middle East conflicts that have roiled the region, with its allies battered — including the militant groups and fighters of its self-described “axis of resistance,” such as Palestinian Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
Iranian banknotes are displayed by a street money exchanger at Ferdowsi square, Tehran's go-to venue for foreign currency exchange, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranian banknotes are displayed by a street money exchanger at Ferdowsi square, Tehran's go-to venue for foreign currency exchange, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A man poses for a photo without showing his face as he counts U.S. dollars at Ferdowsi street, Tehran's go-to venue for foreign currency exchange, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A man poses for a photo without showing his face as he counts U.S. dollars at Ferdowsi street, Tehran's go-to venue for foreign currency exchange, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Current and pre-revolution Iranian banknotes are displayed by a street money exchanger at Ferdowsi St. in downtown Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
