Three men accused of raping a woman on Brighton beach last month will face trial in March.

Abdulla Ahmadi, 25, an Iranian national from Crewe, and Karin Al-Danasurt, 20, and Ibrahim Alshafe, 25, both Egyptian nationals from Horsham, were arrested last month and each charged with two counts of rape. Sussex Police received a report that a woman had been raped on the lower esplanade in Brighton at about 5am on October 4.

A plea hearing was adjourned today after no Kurdish interpreter was available for Ahmadi. A three-week trial is scheduled for March 2026. The men will remain in custody ahead of a pre-trial hearing set for December. According to the Home Office, the men arrived in the UK by irregular means and were awaiting decisions on their asylum claims.

Det Sup Andy Harbour said in

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