British forces raid apartment
U.K. investigates ‘network’ of alleged Manchester attackers
MANCHESTER, England — British security forces raided an apartment building Wednesday in central Manchester as they investigated a network of people allegedly behind the city’s concert bombing. Hundreds of soldiers were sent to secure key sites across the country, including Buckingham Palace and Parliament.
Home Secretary Amber Rudd said the bomber, Salman Abedi, “likely” did not act alone when he killed 22 people and wounded scores at an Ariana Grande concert Monday night in Manchester. She said he had been known to security forces “up to a point.”
Abedi, a 22-year-old British citizen born to Libyan parents who grew up around Manchester, died in the attack.
In Libya, authorities arrested Abedi’s father and a younger brother. The anti-terror force that took the brother, 18-yearold Hashim, into custody said the teenager had confessed that both he and his brother were a part of the Islamic State group and that Hashim Abedi had been aware of the details of the attack.
The father, Ramadan Abedi, denied his son’s involvement in an interview with The Associated Press earlier Wednesday, saying “We don’t believe in killing innocents.”
Another man taken into custody Tuesday in Manchester was identified by Abedi’s father as another son, 23-year-old Ismail.
British police, meanwhile, arrested four additional suspects on Wednesday and were assessing a package carried by one of the men, detained in Wigan, a town west of Manchester. Authorities were raiding properties thought to be connected to Abedi. No one has yet been charged in the case and authorities have not identified the suspects.
“I think it’s very clear this is a network we are investigating,” said Chief Constable Ian Hopkins of the Manchester Police, adding that an off-duty police officer was among those killed in the concert attack.
Many at the concert were young girls and teens enthralled by Grande’s pop power — and those who died included an 8-year-old girl.
Officials are examining Abedi’s trips to Libya and possibly Syria as they piece together his allegiances and try to foil any new potential threats. The government said nearly 1,000 soldiers were deployed Wednesday in high-profile sites in London and elsewhere, replacing police, who can work on counter-terrorism duties.
Britain raised its threat level from terrorism to “critical” late Tuesday amid concerns that Abedi may have accomplices who are planning another deadly attack.
Heavily armed police raided an apartment building in Manchester on Wednesday afternoon, blasting the door open with a controlled explosion. Neighbour Adam Prince said the raided apartment had been used as an Airbnb.
Muye Li, a 23-year-old student who lives on the same floor, said he thought officers were looking for a woman because they “asked me if I had seen the lady next door.”
Across London, troops fanned out and authorities implemented special security plans.
The changing of the guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace was cancelled Wednesday so police officers can be re-deployed. The traditional ceremony is a major tourist attraction in London.
The Palace of Westminster, which houses the British Parliament in London, was closed Wednesday to all those without passes, and tours and events there were cancelled until further notice. Armed police also patrolled outside St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.
“(The goal) is to make our city as hostile an environment as possible for terrorists to plan and operate,” said London Police Commander Jane Connors.
The Chelsea soccer team announced it would cancel Sunday’s victory parade in London to celebrate the team’s Premier League title. “We are sure our fans will understand this decision,” the team said, adding that the parade would have diverted police from the bombing investigation.
Speaking Wednesday from the Libyan city of Tripoli, Abedi’s father denied that his son was linked to militants or to the deadly attack. Ramadan Abedi told the AP that when he spoke to his son five days ago, he sounded “normal.”
He said his son was getting ready to visit Saudi Arabia for a short Umrah pilgrimage, then planned to head to Libya to spend the Islamic holy month of Ramadan with his family.
“We don’t believe in killing innocents. This is not us,” the elder Abedi told the AP by telephone. “We aren’t the ones who blow up ourselves among innocents. We go to mosques. We recite Qur’an, but not that.”
He said his son last visited Libya a month and a half ago and never visited Syria.
The senior Abedi fled Tripoli in 1993 after Moammar Gadhafi’s security authorities issued an arrest warrant for him and eventually sought political asylum in Britain. Now he is a manager for the Central Security force in Tripoli.
He denied having ties to any of Libya’s militant groups, including the Libya Islamic Fighting Group, which was linked to al-Qaida.
But former Libyan security official Abdel-Basit Haroun told the AP that the elder Abedi was a member of the group in the 1990s. Although it disbanded, Haroun said the father now belongs to the Salafi Jihadi movement, the most extreme sect of Salafism from which al-Qaida and the Islamic State group both hail.