A neo-Nazi teenager who attempted to behead a Kurdish barber with an axe because she wanted to “kill all Jews and Muslims” has been jailed for more than 15 years.
The Sentencing
Alina Burns, 19, was sentenced at Bristol Crown Court to 15-and-a-half years in custody, with an additional four‑year period on licence, following her guilty plea to attempted murder. The judge, Mrs Justice Lambert, imposed an extended sentence for dangerousness, meaning Burns will be eligible to apply for parole only after serving two‑thirds of her prison term.
The Attack
The attack took place on the afternoon of 2 August 2025 on East Street in Bedminster, south Bristol. Burns, who is 5ft 2in tall, approached Mohammed Mahmoodi, a 27‑year‑old Kurdish barber, from behind as he stood outside his shop. She swung an axe at his neck. CCTV footage showed Mr Mahmoodi turning and ducking at the last moment, which caused the blade to inflict only a small wound. He is considerably larger than Burns and managed to wrestle the axe away from her. A nearby police officer heard the disturbance and arrested Burns at the scene.
Mr Mahmoodi, who fled Iran due to persecution and sought asylum in the UK, said in a statement: “After this attack my life has completely changed. I cannot move my neck easily and the physical reminder of the scar where I was nearly killed is a daily reminder. My mental health has suffered and I am living in fear. My sleep is impacted and I wake up with bad dreams and nightmares of being attacked from behind with an axe. I am still living with the effects of the attack more mentally than I could have imagined.”
Extremist Beliefs and Online Activity
Burns admitted a total of four charges: attempted murder and three offences of possessing an article with a blade or point – an axe, a scalpel and two darts. She denied a charge of engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts under the Terrorism Act, which was ordered to lie on file. The Crown argued that, despite the pleas, a terrorist motivation underpinned the attack, and the judge accepted that position.
Serena Gates KC, prosecuting, told the court: “The prosecution case is that the defendant had an extreme right‑wing mindset and wanted Jews and Muslims to be killed and non‑whites to flee or be expelled from the UK.” Burns’ stated goal, the court heard, was a “white England, achieved, if necessary, through terror.” She referred to herself as the “embodiment of hell” and said she wanted to “annihilate everything holy.” In messages on an online dating app, she told a man: “Kill all the Jews and Muslims in Britain please” and expressed a desire to “amplify everything I bear witness too.” That man reported the exchange to the police. The judge noted that Burns had also communicated with the far‑right group Patriotic Alternative via Telegram.
Counter‑terrorism police stated that Burns was radicalised by what she saw online. On the day before the attack she watched videos of SS marches and sent an email titled “The dawn of civil war.” Her online searches included information about jihad, the 2024 Southport stabbings, “Jewish supremacy” and Nazi Germany. Investigators found notes at her home referencing German SS units, Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and the nationalist novel The Turner Diaries. A copy of a terrorist handbook detailing chemicals and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) was recovered from her computer.
Burns also claimed that she believed Mr Mahmoodi’s barbershop was involved in “money laundering” and that police were not acting on it, suggesting her attack was intended to prompt an investigation.
Patriotic Alternative, with which Burns was in contact, is described as a British far‑right, fascist, neo‑Nazi and white nationalist hate group. Its leader, Mark Collett, has links to the now‑banned neo‑Nazi terror organisation National Action. The group has been accused of promoting neo‑Nazi ideology and has been subject to assessment under the UK government’s new definition of extremism. Members of Patriotic Alternative have posted racist and antisemitic comments on Telegram. The group has been described as “Britain’s largest far‑right white supremacist movement.”
Burns’ interest in the 2024 Southport stabbings – in which Axel Rudakubana murdered three young girls at a dance studio on 29 July 2024 – formed part of her online searches. A public inquiry later found that those stabbings could have been prevented due to critical failings at multiple levels, including information sharing and parental involvement.
Background and Defence
Andrew Langdon KC, defending, said Burns had experienced a difficult childhood. Her family had been made homeless and lived in a series of temporary accommodation. Although both her parents were teachers, she stopped attending full‑time education at the age of 14. Langdon described the “last three or four years of her life” as “a spiralling descent and isolation, despite living with her family.”
Passing sentence, Mrs Justice Lambert said: “I have no doubt that you are a dangerous offender and you remain deeply entrenched in your abnormal belief system.” The judge noted that Burns had communicated with a man on an online dating app in which she expressed a desire to kill all Jews and Muslims in Britain and to “take all the glory for carrying this out.”
The sentencing was conducted under the framework of the Counter‑Terrorism and Sentencing Act 2021, which mandates stricter supervision and longer sentences for serious terror offences. Burns will serve her custodial term in a secure setting, subject to the parole eligibility rules for extended sentences.
