Manchester Arena bombing

Manchester Arena bombing
Part of Islamic terrorism and
terrorism in the United Kingdom
The exterior of Manchester Arena in 2010
Manchester Arena bombing is located in Greater Manchester
Manchester Arena
Manchester Arena
Manchester Arena bombing (Greater Manchester)
Manchester Arena bombing is located in the United Kingdom
Manchester Arena bombing
Manchester Arena bombing (the United Kingdom)
LocationManchester Arena
Manchester, England, U.K.
Coordinates53°29′17.3″N 2°14′34″W / 53.488139°N 2.24278°W / 53.488139; -2.24278
Date22 May 2017 (2017-05-22)
22:31 (BST)
TargetConcert-goers
Attack type
Suicide bombing
WeaponNail bomb
Deaths23 (including the bomber)
Injured
800+[1]
PerpetratorSalman Ramadan Abedi
MotiveIslamic extremism[2]

The Manchester Arena bombing was an Islamist suicide bomb attack. It occurred in Manchester, England, on the 22 May 2017. Twenty-three people were killed, including the bomber.[3][4][5][5]

Bombing

The explosion caused Manchester Victoria railway station's services to be blocked. Police described the reports as a "serious incident".[6]

Mayor of Liverpool Steve Rotheram was present at the concert with his family.[7]

At approximately 01:35 BST, a controlled explosion was conducted by police in Cathedral Gardens after what was believed to be an explosive device was found.[8] The item was determined to be harmless clothing that was left behind.

Police were first treating this as a possible but unconfirmed terrorist attack done by a suicide bomber until confirmed as a suicide bombing hours later.[9]

The bombing is the most deadly terrorist attack to occur in the United Kingdom since the 7 July 2005 London bombings.[10]

Attacker

The suicide bomber, Salman Ramadan Abedi, was a 22-year-old British citizen of Sunni Islam faith[11] and was known to British security services.[12] He was born in Manchester on 31 December 1994 to a family of refugees from Libya who had settled in south Manchester.[13][14][15] The lone male was reported to have carried out the attack using an improvised explosive device in an act of a suicide attack.

Reactions

The event took place just over two weeks before a general election in the United Kingdom. Both Prime Minister and Conservative leader Theresa May, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron quickly condemned the incident, expressed sympathy for the victims, and praised the response of emergency services.[16][17]

Condolences were expressed by the leaders and governments of many countries:[18] United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres,[19] Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland,[20] President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker,[21] Pope Francis,[22] and Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Yousef Al-Othaimeen.[23]

President Donald Trump condemned the attack and wrote on Twitter: "We stand in absolute solidarity with the people of the United Kingdom." Trump also commented on the events whilst on a visit to Israel, calling the perpetrator(s) "evil losers."[24]

A one-minute silence was observed at 11am on 25 May 2017.

References

  1. ↑ Abbit, Beth (22 June 2017). "Number of people injured in Manchester terror attack rises to 250". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  2. ↑ "TEXT-UK Prime Minister May's statement following London attack". Reuters. 4 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  3. ↑ "Deaths confirmed after Manchester Arena blast reports - BBC News". Bbc.co.uk. 1 January 1970. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  4. ↑ "Gig-goers killed in 'explosion' at Manchester Arena - live updates". Manchester Evening News. 22 May 2017.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 CBS/AP 22 May 2017, 6:46 PM. "Police: "Confirmed fatalities" after reports of explosion at Manchester Arena". CBS News. Retrieved 22 May 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ↑ @gmpolice (23 May 2017). "Emergency services responding to serious incident at Manchester Arena. Avoid the area. More details will follow as soon as available" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  7. ↑ Roberts, Rachel (23 May 2017). "Manchester 'explosions': A 'number of fatalities' reported following Ariana Grande concert". The Independent. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  8. ↑ News, Sky (22 May 2017). "#Manchester incident update: Police have performed a controlled explosion in Cathedral gardens after police found a suspected device". {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  9. ↑ "LIVE: Manchester 'explosion' treated as terror". Sky UK. May 22, 2017. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  10. ↑ Staff, Quartz; Staff, Quartz. "A timeline of deadly terror attacks in the UK since 2005". Quartz.
  11. ↑ "MANCHESTER BOMBER SALMAN ABEDI 'WENT OFF THE RAILS' AS A TEENAGER, SAYS RELIGIOUS LEADER". Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  12. ↑ "Manchester Arena attacker named by police as Salman Ramadan Abedi". The Guardian. 23 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  13. ↑ "Manchester attack: Who was Salman Abedi?". bbc.com. BBC. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  14. ↑ Evans, Martin; Ward, Victoria (23 May 2017). "Salman Abedi named as the Manchester suicide bomber – what we know about him". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 May 2017. his parents were Libyan refugees who came to the UK to escape the Gaddafi regime
  15. ↑ "Manchester attack: Who was the suspect Salman Abedi?". BBC News. Retrieved 24 May 2017. His parents escaped to Britain as refugees from Libya.
  16. ↑ "Manchester 'explosion': Jeremy Corbyn responds to reported blast after multiple deaths confirmed". The Independent. May 22, 2017. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  17. ↑ "'SHOCKING' Politicians react after Manchester Arena 'explosion' at Ariana Grande concert". Daily Express. May 22, 2017. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  18. ↑ Palazzo, Chiara. "'An attack on innocents': World reacts with shock and horror to Manchester explosion". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 23 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  19. ↑ "UN chief strongly condemns terrorist attack on Manchester concert". 23 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  20. ↑ "Statement by Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland on terror attack in Manchester". 23 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  21. ↑ "Statement by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker following the attack in Manchester". 23 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  22. ↑ "Pope Francis offers condolences to Manchester attack victims". Catholic Herald. 23 May 2017. Archived from the original on 24 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  23. ↑ "OIC Secretary General Condemns the Deadly Attack in Manchester, the United Kingdom". 23 May 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.[permanent dead link]
  24. ↑ "Trump calls Manchester attack perpetrators 'evil losers'". 23 May 2017.