MI5 missed chance to stop arena bombing

BRITISH security services missed warnings that could have prevented the Manchester Arena atrocity, it was claimed yesterday.

MI5 received at least two items of intelligence about Salman Abedi’s suspicious behaviour before he killed 22 people in a suicide bomb attack.

A security source reportedly said: “There were a few calls made regarding several bits of intelligence which, if judged differently at the time, would have turned Abedi into a high-priority case. And when a target is judged a high priority, you should place them under surveillance. The greater the threat, the more resources you deploy for surveillance.” The intelligence emerged in an MI5

internal review and the findings are thought to have been sent to Home Secretary Amber Rudd last week.

The information about Abedi, 23, was not considered of high significance when received, but it is now said to have been enough to raise “serious alarm”.

MI5 chief Andrew Parker is believed to be under pressure over the matter. The agency, with 4,000 staff, is struggling to keep up with its workload.

One former spook told the Daily Mirror: “The speed and complexity of investigations now is unbelievable.”

Meanwhile, it has been claimed emergency services could have saved more lives in Manchester had they not been held back due to fear of more bombs.

Firefighters waited an hour and 47 minutes to be deployed because they were not insured for terror incidents.

One told the BBC’S Inside Out: “The skills we have got could help.”