British home secy irritated at US for leaking details of attack suspect

LONDON: Home secretary Amber Rudd expressed UK’s irritation over some US officials leaking the identity of Salman Abedi, the suspect in the Manchester attack, hours before the name was released by the police .

She said: “The British police have been very clear they want to control the flow of information in order to protect operational integrity - the element of surprise - so it is irritating if it gets released from other sources, and I’ve been very clear with our friends that that should not happen again.”

Asked if she would be looking at how information sharing with the US may have resulted in the premature release of details that the British police and security services had not wanted in the public domain, Rudd said: “Yes, quite frankly.”

Pressed on whether the Americans had compromised the probe, she said: “I wouldn’t go that far, but I can say they are perfectly clear about the situation and that it shouldn’t happen again.”

After a series of vigils in Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and elsewhere on Tuesday, vigils were also being organised in Sheffield and other towns, as the UK comes to terms with what appears to be the first case of suicide bombing in the country. So far, names of 10 of the 22 victims have been released. The victims include a Polish couple who were at the venue to collect their daughter attending the concert.