Manchester terror may have more to it
The ghastly terror attack by a suicide bomber at a theatre show in Manchester which was mostly attended by young men and women and some children highlights the vulnerability of people in the western world to extremist activity and the inhumanity of the perpetrators. That at least 22 people were killed and 59 maimed in the blast points to the ferocity of the attack which occurred just after US pop sensation Ariana Grande had ended his concert and people were milling out. While the assailant was identified as Salman Abedi a, a British-born, Libyan ascent youth of 22 years who later blew himself up, the Islamic State (IS) was quick to claim responsibility for the attack as a sadistic badge of honour. Preliminary reports say that Abedi had travelled to Libya, raising fears he had been trained there and posing questions for the security services on whether he should have been tracked.
The UK official threat level from international terrorism was raised on Tuesday from severe to critical – meaning another attack is “expected imminently”. This is the first time in 10 years that it has been raised to this level. The increased risk has seen up to 5,000 soldiers being deployed on the streets amid fears the bomber had accomplices preparing further attacks. Experts believe the device detonated at the concert was so sophisticated that Abedi must have either been given specialist training abroad or used a bomb made by a technician who has not yet been captured. While a section of the media regards the alarm raised by Prime Minister Theresa May as an over-reaction, others say it is better to err on the side of caution and that that the threat is indeed grave. In August 2014, Theresa May at that time the Home Secretary had announced the terror threat was being raised to severe in the wake of warnings of the deadly threat posed by British jihadists radicalised fighting for Islamic State extremists in Syria and Iraq. But mercifully, nothing untoward happened.
Campaigning for the June 8 general election has been suspended following the attack, which is the worst terrorist atrocity ever to take place during a UK election period. While MI5 spooks and anti-terror cops are now racing against the clock to uncover Abedi’s links to any possible terror cell, Theresa May said Britain is bracing itself for further terrorist attacks after the atrocity.