COMMENT

our national security. I am asking the department of justice and other relevant agencies to launch a complete review of this matter, and if appropriate, the culprit should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The president added: “There is no relationship we cherish more than the Special Relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom.”

Publication of photos including images of blood-stained and charred bomb parts, as well as fragments of the backpack used to carry the Manchester bomb, came hours after Home Secretary Amber Rudd called the leaks “irritating” and said they should stop.

Updating the media on the investigation yesterday, Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said the latest leak had also “caused much distress” to families of the victims.

The leaks began within hours of the bombing in Manchester on Monday night, with US media reporting first that the explosion was a suicide bombing, then naming the perpetrator as Salman Abedi before Greater Manchester Police were ready to confirm his identity.

The New York Times also published a diagram showing where individual victims of Monday’s attack were standing in relation to the bomber.

With the Trump administration in conflict with the US intelligence community and facing damaging leaks almost daily since the president’s sacking of James Comey as FBI director, there is speculation the row has been orchestrated to embarrass the president on the international stage.

A Whitehall source was quoted as saying that UK officials were “furious”.

The source said: “This is completely unacceptable. These images leaked from inside the US system will be

0 Manchester fell silent at 11am to honour the bombing victims distressing for victims, their families and the wider public.

“The issue is being raised at every relevant level by the British authorities with their US counterparts.”

Greater Manchester metro mayor Andy Burnham said that a decision had been taken early in the investigation to be cautious about putting information into the public domain, and tweeted that he had complained to the acting US ambassador about the leaks.

Mr Burnham added that the revelations were “arrogant, wrong and disrespectful”.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council condemned the revelations, saying it “undermines our investigations and the confidence of victims, witnesses and their families”.

Lord Carlile, the former Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, described the leaks as “very unusual and irresponsible”.

KURT VOLKER

He said: “It damages decades of confidence between the UK and US services, the cohesion of the ‘Five Eyes’ group [comprising the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand], and sharing of information with French, German and other security services.

“These leaks made yesterday a very bad day for national security in several countries, and those responsible should be called to account.”

Former Metropolitan Police commissioner Lord Blair said the leak of images from the attack was a “grievous breach”, but added that something similar had happened after the London 7/7 bombings.

Lord Blair, who was head of the Met during the 2005 attacks, said: “I’m afraid it just reminds me exactly of what happened after 7/7 when the United States published a complete picture of the way the bombs in 7/7 had been made up.

“And we had the same protests. It’s a very grievous breach, but I’m afraid it’s the same as before.”

Congressman Adam Schiff, a senior member of the intelligence committee in the US House of Representatives, said: “If we gave up information that has interfered in any way with their investigation because it tipped off people in Britain – perhaps associates of this person that we identified as the bomber – then that’s a real problem and they have every right to be furious.”

Kurt Volker, a former US permanent

“If you are an allied intelligence service you are going to think twice about sharing something if you believe this could now be released”