Mohanad Goobe

On the afternoon of Monday the 15th of September 2025, fifteen-year-old Mohanad Abdullaahi Goobe was stabbed to death on a street in Moss Side, Manchester. He had left Whitworth Park with two friends, believing a confrontation was over. It had only just begun.

Mohanad was the youngest of three children - funny, loyal, loved. His death came at the end of an escalating conflict that began with an argument on TikTok, moved through a series of arranged fights in public parks, and ended with a planned ambush carried out by a group of more than twenty boys, some of them still in school uniform.

Three teenagers were convicted following a trial at Bolton Crown Court in April 2026. Two were found guilty of murder. One was found guilty of manslaughter. All three were juveniles and could not be named.

This episode tells the story of who Mohanad was, how the conflict developed, and what the evidence presented at trial and sentencing reveals about the forces of social media, wounded pride, the easy availability of knives - that converged on an ordinary Monday afternoon to take his life.

It also carries the words of his mother, Amaley, who stood in court and asked the question that his death demands: why has it become normal for children to carry knives?

What I found hardest with this episode was not showing my annoyance at how incredibly stupid teenage boys can be. Monahand wasn’t reckless or foolish. He wasn’t a boy who went out with a knife, looking for trouble. He went to back up a friend in fight and ended up stabbed to death over another teenager’s hurt pride.

His mother Amaley asked the court why it has become normal for children to carry knives. This, I really struggle with. I guess the common answer is, for defence against other kids with knives. But when knives are carried, knives get used.

The judge’s sentencing remarks where he describes the character and past of BRC, SHU and NTG, make interesting reading. NTG had been excluded from school 11 times in 2 years. BRC came from a violent and unstable home. SHU – well he seemed to have a stable background but didn’t show any remorse.

It’s really tempting to blame the parents here – but something deeper is at play. Two of these boys were clearly very troubled – where was the intervention and the support for them before it got to this stage? And as for SHU – well, he was the organiser. There’s something not quite right going on with a teenage boy who thinks this way. Again – what could have been done sooner, to put these boys on a safer, happier path in life?

Mohanad’s family asked that he be remembered with love in your heart and a kind word on your lips, so that is what I have tried to do.