Hunt for concert bomber’s gang
Police seek accomplices of British-born Libyan who killed 22 in suicide bomb attack after music show in Manchester
MANCHESTER // Investigators were hunting yesterday for accomplices of the suicide bomber who killed 22 people in an attack at a concert by the US pop singer Ariana Grande in Manchester in the north of England.
Salman Abedi, 22, British-born of Libyan descent, detonated his explosives in the foyer of the Manchester Arena late on Monday as the crowd of mostly teenage fans started to leave.
Among the victims were Saffie Rose Roussos, 8, and Georgina Callander, 18, who had posed for a picture with the singer Grande at a previous concert. Another 59 people were taken to hospital, many with life-threatening conditions. Prime minister Theresa May vowed “terrorists will not prevail” and campaigning for the UK election was suspended as a mark of respect for the victims.
ISIL said the attacker was one of its militants but provided no evidence to support the claim.
Manchester police chief constable Ian Hopkins said: “The priority remains to establish whether he was acting alone or as part of a network.”
Abedi was born in Manchester after his Libyan parents fled the regime of Muammar Qaddafi.
Witnesses described the horror when the suicide bomber blew himself up causing the young crowd to stampede for the exits.
The attack sparked a nightlong search for loved ones – parents for the children they had accompanied or had been waiting to pick up, and friends for each other after groups were scattered by the blast. Social media lit up with heartbreaking appeals for the missing. Mancunians opened their doors to shelter people lost in the confusion, hotels offered refuge and taxi drivers gave free rides to take people home after public transport was halted.
“There were fathers carrying their little girls in tears. People were pushing down the stairs. It was just … chaos,” said Sebastian Diaz, 19, from Newcastle.
The blast scattered bolts and other bits of metal, intended to maximise injuries and deaths.
“There was this massive bang. And then everyone just went really quiet. And that’s when the screaming started,” said Ryan Molloy, 25. “As we came outside to Victoria Station, there were just people all over the floor covered in blood. My partner was helping to try to stem the blood from this one person … they were pouring blood from their leg. It was just awful.”
The attack was Britain’s worst terror bloodshed for more than a decade and came just over two weeks before the country votes in a general election, and after a series of deadly extremist attacks across Europe.
Police staged an armed raid on Abedi’s home in Manchester, and carried out a controlled explosion to gain entry after arresting a 23-year-old man in connection with the attack.
“We understand that feelings are very raw right now and people are bound to be looking for answers,” chief constable Hopkins said. “However, now, more than ever, it is vital that our diverse communities in Greater Manchester stand together and do not tolerate hate.”
Speaking after an emergency ministerial meeting, Mrs May said: “A single terrorist detonated his improvised explosive device near one of the exits of the venue, deliberately choosing the time and place to cause maxi- mum carnage and to kill and injure indiscriminately.”
She said during a visit to Manchester that police would look at the security of such venues, while the government would also review police resources. Donald Trump and European leaders issued vows of defiance and stars from music and football such as former Manchester United player David Beckham expressed condolences.
Police said the blast occurred in the foyer of the arena, a covered area which links the 21,000-capacity auditorium, one of the world’s largest indoor concert venues, to Victoria Station, a train and tram hub.
Witnesses reported seeing bodies on the floor after the blast about 10.30pm, and some fans were trampled as panicked crowds tried to flee.
Families were separated, with dozens of young people taken to nearby hotels overnight, and some parents were still desperately searching for their children yesterday.
“I’m just hearing nothing – her phone’s dead,” Charlotte Campbell, whose 15-year-old daughter Olivia was at the concert, told BBC radio.
The attack was the deadliest in Britain since July 7, 2005 when four suicide bombers inspired by Al Qaeda attacked London’s transport system during rush hour, killing 52 people and wounding 700 more.
It revived memories of the November 2015 attack at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris in which armed men wearing explosive belts stormed in and killed 90 people.
That attack was also claimed by ISIL, as was one in March by a knifeman at the gates of the British parliament – although police downplayed that claim. Queen Elizabeth condemned the Manchester attack as an “act of barbarity” and observed a minute’s silence at a Buckingham Palace garden reception.
Mr Trump said during a visit to Bethlehem: “So many young, beautiful, innocent people living and enjoying their lives murdered by evil losers.”
The Eiffel Tower’s lights were turned off at midnight last in homage to the victims, while the Cannes film festival also observed a minute’s silence.
In the UAE, national landmarks including the Burj Khalifa were illuminated in the red, white and blue of the British flag.
Britain’s national terror threat level has been “severe”, the second-highest of five levels meaning an attack is highly likely, since August 2014, and Mrs May said this would remain unchanged, but under review.
In a city famed globally for its musical traditions and football teams, show business stars and teams joined in to express their shock at the carnage.
“We are deeply shocked by last night’s terrible events,” said Manchester United.
A support centre for people caught up in the attack was set up at the Etihad Stadium, the home of their rivals Manchester City.
Britain’s third biggest city was hit in 1996 by a massive car bomb planted at a shopping centre by Irish Republican Army paramilitaries which injured more than 200 people.