A hearing was held on March 13, which falls within the preliminary procedures that follow the referral of the case to the Supreme Court. This hearing included verification of the defendant’s identity and the completion of formal procedural steps, in addition to confirming the official transfer of the case to the Central Criminal Court (Old Bailey), as well as laying the groundwork for scheduling future case management hearings.

The defendant, Salem Michel Al-Salem, attended the session remotely via video technology, with the assistance of an interpreter, as pre-arranged, without physical presence in the courtroom, similar to the first hearing session.

During the hearing, the defence team raised concerns regarding the defendant’s fitness to plead and to stand trial. Accordingly, Judge Cheema-Grubb directed the defence to submit their medical and psychological reports to both the Court and the Prosecution no later than 22 May 2026. In parallel, the Prosecution will instruct its own experts to prepare corresponding reports, to be submitted by 1 July 2026.

A case management hearing before the Central Criminal Court has also been scheduled for 3 July 2026 to consider the defendant’s health condition.