MANCHESTER BOMBING

UK deploys 1,000 soldiers to protect key sites after terror attack

British security forces arrested three more suspects yesterday in connection with the Manchester concert bombing and sent hundreds of soldiers to secure key sites across the country, including Buckingham Palace and the British parliament at Westminster.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said the bomber, identified as British-born Libyan Salman Abedi, “likely” did not act alone when he killed 22 people and wounded dozens at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester Monday night. She said he had been known to security forces “up to a point.”

Many at the concert were young girls and teens enthralled by Grande’s pop power. The youngest victim of the bombing named so far was just eight years old.

Officials are examining Abedi’s trips to Libya and possibly Syria as they piece together his allegiances and try to foil any new potential threats. The government said nearly 1,000 soldiers were deployed yesterday instead of police in high-profile sites in London and other locations.

Police said three men were arrested in south Manchester, where a day earlier a 23-yearold man was also arrested and a number of homes were searched.

Britain raised its threat level from terrorism to “critical” after an emergency government meeting late on Tuesday amid concerns that the 22-yearold Abedi may have had accomplices who are planning another attack.

The changing of the guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace was cancelled yesterday so police officers could be re-deployed, Britain’s defence ministry said.

The Palace of Westminster in London, which houses the British parliament, was also closed to all those without passes, and tours and events there were cancelled until further notice. Armed police were also seen on patrol outside St Paul’s Cathedral in London, another popular tourist spot.

The Chelsea soccer team announced it would cancel Sunday’s victory parade in London that was to have celebrated the team’s Premier League title win this season.

“We are sure our fans will understand this decision,” the team said, adding that the parade would have diverted police from the bombing investigation.

Suicide bomber Abedi was born in Britain to a Libyan family, grew up in Manchester’s southern suburbs and once attended Salford University there.

Police raided his house on Tuesday, using a controlled explosion to blast down the door. Neighbours recalled him as a tall, thin young man who often wore traditional Islamic dress and did not talk much.

Manchester police arrested a man early yesterday at a house just a 10-minute walk from Abedi’s home.

Police also raided and searched a property elsewhere in Manchester, where Abedi’s brother Ismail is thought to have lived.

British PM Theresa May chaired a meeting of her emergency security cabinet group to talk about intelligence reports on Abedi and concerns that he might have had outside support.

Officials are probing how Abedi had often travelled to Libya, which has seen an eruption of armed Islamist groups since dictator Muammar Gadhafi was overthrown and killed in 2011.

France’s interior minister said Abedi is believed to have traveled to Syria and had “proven” links with the Islamic State group. British officials, however, have not commented on whether Abedi had links to IS or other extremist groups.

In addition to those killed in the concert attack, Manchester officials raised the number of people who sought medical treatment after the attack to 119.

Sixty-four people are still hospitalised, Jon Rouse of the Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership said Wednesday. Officials say 20 of them are being treated for critical injuries.

Many of them had serious wounds that will require “very long term care and support in terms of their recovery,” Rouse said.

Officials said all those hospitalised had been identified.

As soldiers replaced armed police at Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street and the Palace of Westminster, London Police Commander Jane Connors said the goal is to “make our city as hostile an environment as possible for terrorists to plan and operate.”