A British court on Thursday upheld lengthy jail terms handed to the parents and uncle imprisoned for killing a British-Pakistani girl, after subjecting her to years of abuse.

The trial of Urfan Sharif and Beinash Batool caused waves of revulsion in the UK as the horrific abuse suffered by the 10-year-old girl was revealed in a London court. There was anger too at how the bright, bubbly youngster had been failed by all the authorities supposed to be in charge of her care.

Urfan, 43, Beinash, 30 and the girl’s uncle, 29-year-old Faisal Malik, all lost appeal bids to reduce their sentences today.

The court also refused a plea by the solicitor general’s office to impose a stiffer whole life sentence on Urfan.

Sara’s father was sentenced in December to 40 years in prison for her murder, while her stepmother was ordered to remain in jail for at least 33 years. Her uncle was sentenced to 16 years after being found guilty of causing or allowing her death.

Sara’s body was found in bed at the family home in August 2023 covered in bites and bruises with broken bones and burns inflicted by an electric iron and boiling water.

Seeking to reduce Sharif’s term, lawyer Naeem Majid Mian argued that although Sara’s treatment had been “horrendous”, it did not merit his 40-year sentence.

“There was no intention to kill … and [the death] was not premeditated,” he added.

But documents submitted to the court on behalf of the solicitor general, one of the government’s top legal officers, called for Sharif to have an indefinite sentence imposed.

“It is submitted that the judge was wrong not to impose a whole life order on the offender,” said lawyer Tom Little in a text submission.

A lawyer for Sara’s stepmother also told the court that her sentence of 33 years was too long and did not “justly reflect her role”.

Dismissing Sharif’s appeal, Lady Chief Justice Sue Carr, the highest-ranking judge in England and Wales, said: “We can see no arguable basis to challenge the conclusion of the trial judge.”

Passing sentence in December after the trial, Judge John Cavanagh said Sara had been subjected to “acts of extreme cruelty” but that Urfan and Batool had not shown “a shred of remorse”.

They had treated Sara as “worthless” and as “a skivvy”, because she was a girl. And because she was not Batool’s natural child, the stepmother had failed to protect her, he said. “This poor child was battered with great force again and again.”

‘Most distressing case’

Sara’s father, 43, was sentenced to 40 years in prison, while her stepmother, 30, was ordered to remain in jail for at least 33 years.

Both were appealing their terms at the Royal Courts of Justice, along with Sara’s uncle, Faisal Malik, 29, who lived with the family and was sentenced to 16 years after being found guilty of causing or allowing her death.

Solicitor General Lucy Rigby appealed the sentence imposed on Urfan, maintaining it was “unduly lenient”.

A post-mortem examination of Sara’s body revealed she had 71 fresh injuries and at least 25 broken bones.

She had been beaten with a metal pole and cricket bat and “trussed up” with a “grotesque combination of parcel tape, a rope and a plastic bag” over her head.

A hole was cut in the bag so she could breathe, and she was left to soil herself in nappies as she was prevented from using the bathroom.

Police called the case “one of the most difficult and distressing” that they had ever had to deal with.

The day after Sara died, the three adults fled their home in Woking, southwest of London, and flew to Pakistan with five other children.

Her father, a taxi-driver, left behind a handwritten note saying he had not meant to kill his daughter. After a month on the run, the three returned to the UK and were arrested after landing. The five other children remain in Pakistan.

There has been anger in the UK that Sara’s brutal treatment was missed by social services after her father withdrew her from school four months before she died.

Urfan and his first wife, Olga, were well-known to social services.

In 2019, a judge decided to award the care of Sara and her older brother to Urfan, despite his history of abuse.

The school had raised the alarm about Sara’s case three times, notably after she arrived in class wearing a hijab she used to try to cover marks on her body that she refused to explain.

Since December, the government has moved to tighten up the rules on home-schooling.

Sara’s body was repatriated to Poland, where her mother is from, and where a funeral was organised.

Which twenty-six Reds will we see?

A good bit has changed about the nature of the Cincinnati Reds roster mix since last we gave our best guess at who might be included on it come Opening Day.

Spencer Steer’s shoulder maintained its issues, and he received a cortisone shot back on March 1st. Andrew Abbott, though, has seen his shoulder progress well enough that he threw a pair of IP in a AAA game just yesterday. Rhett Lowder is still behind schedule, unfortunately, but at least it looks like he’s moving forward and not backwards. Speaking of ‘back,’ Tyler Stephenson headed for an MRI after lingering back pain.

Rule 5 draftee Cooper Bowman was sent back to the Oaksacvegas Athletics, while former top prospect Noelvi Marte was officially sent down to AAA.

That’s a lot to process, as are the risks of losing players in camp as non-roster invitees if they aren’t selected to start the season. Same goes for players with no options remaining, as they very well could be scooped up on waivers if not placed on the roster from day one.

With Opening Day now less that two weeks away (!!), here’s our latest, greatest estimate of which Reds will make up the Opening Day roster.

Catcher

I’ve got Tyler Stephenson (1) still on here alongside Jose Trevino (2), as all initial reports on Ty Steve’s back are that his issue is minor. It may mean we see more of Jose in the lineup early on, so far there’s nothing to suggest these aren’t the two backstops they’ll carry from day one.

Infielders (5)

Elly De La Cruz (3) and Matt McLain (4) are the cornerstones of this team, and they’ll form the middle infield. Christian Encarnacion-Strand (5) and Jeimer Candelario (6) seem to be locks in the corner rotation, while Santiago Espinal (7) has solidified his spot as the do-it-all infielder in reserve.

Gavin Lux

Gavin Lux (8)! He’ll see time at 3B, 2B, LF, and even at DH when the time is right. Since I’ve got Spencer Steer beginning the year on the IL, Lux’s versatility will help offset that usually created by having Steer on the roster for the time being.

Outfielders (5)

TJ Friedl (9) is back and healthy and poised to be the everyday CF and leadoff man all 4-WAR style once again. He’ll be flanked by Jake Fraley (10) and Austin Hays (11) most days, with Stuart Fairchild (12) a RHH option on days when Terry Francona wants to stack those up against southpaws. That brings us to Blake Dunn (13), whose RHH ability wins out in this mix over Will Benson since Lux, a LHH, is filling the ‘move anywhere when it’s time to switch’ role previously occupied by Steer, a RHH. In other words, I think Francona will choose to have one more righty bat around than another lefty.

Starting Rotation

Hunter Greene (14) will start on Opening Day, as well he should. He’ll be flanked in some order by each of Nick Martinez (15), Brady Singer (16), and Nick Lodolo (17) for sure at this point. Since the season is long as all heck, I just don’t think the Reds will rush back Andrew Abbott at anything less than ‘full stretched out,’ so I expect him to begin on the IL and miss a turn or two through the rotation - if anything, that may make him even more valuable down the stretch in August/September. I think the Reds carry Carson Spiers (18) as something of ‘starter on an expected bullpen day’ for the time being.

Bullpen

I don’t believe Graham Ashcraft (19) starts the year in the minors - rather, I think he’s carried as the piggyback guy for Spiers’ turn through the rotation with the expecation that he can fill-in for multiple IP when needed in a role akin to how Martinez began last year. Brent Suter (20), Sam Moll (21), and Taylor Rogers (22) form the LHP corps in the ‘pen, while Alexis Díaz (23) will resume his role as the closer. RHP options Emilio Pagán (24) and Scott Barlow (25) have guaranteed money on their deals, so they’ll be down there until they prove ten times they shouldn’t be, leaving one final spot that I’m expected to be filled by Tony Santillan (26) - he pitched well enough last year to deserve it and he’s out of options, so that’s a no-brainer.

Notes

Steer and Abbott are the two notable omissions here. Despite how dismal the Reds have begun seasons in recent memory (and how much that has folded any and all optimism entering those years immediately), I just think they’ll play it safe with them (and Lowder). Abbott getting ~27-28 starts is still very much viable, as is Steer surpassing 550 PA.

Ian Gibaut being back in camp is cool, and he’s fanned 8 against a lone walk in 7.0 IP so far this spring. He’s not on the roster, however, as a NRI on a minor league deal, so I don’t expect him to beat out the rest of the options above. That said, I do think he’s showing enough right now to firmly be in the mix as the first bullpen arm promoted when the inevitable dings happen to the rostered names ahead of him.

Chase Petty has looked really, really solid so far in camp, and at this rate he’ll make his debut (and more) as a Red at some point this year...just not on Opening Day or in the first few turns of the rotation, assuming all goes well elsewhere.