Bombing suspect’s asylum bid was rejected

The suspected terrorist who blew himself up with a homemade bomb outside a hospital was a Christian convert who reportedly had an asylum claim rejected in 2014.

Emad Al Swealmeen is said to have moved to the UK from the Middle East several years ago and was supported by a Christian couple who at one stage housed him in Liverpool.

The 32-year-old died in the blast in a taxi outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital shortly before 11am on Remembrance Sunday.

Taxi driver David Perry escaped the vehicle and has since been discharged from hospital.

Police, who are being assisted by MI5 in the investigation, said “significant progress” had been made but it could take “many weeks” before they fully understand what happened. The incident has been declared a terrorist attack and the UK terror threat level has since been raised from substantial to severe, meaning an attack is “highly likely” rather than “likely”.

It is understood that an Islamist plot is one line of inquiry but investigators are keeping an open mind and the motivation is yet to be established.

Malcolm Hitchcott, who with his wife Elizabeth had taken Al Swealmeen in to live with them, said the suspect had first come to Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral in 2015 wanting to convert from Islam to Christianity.

He was baptised in 2015 and confirmed in 2017, but lost contact with the cathedral in 2018, according to a cathedral spokesman.

Mr Hitchcott said: “He was destitute at that time and we took him in. The UK asylum people were never convinced he was Syrian and he was refused asylum in 2014.”