Manchester Arena Blast: 11 Persons Arrested, Ariana Cancels Shows

Abu Ismail, Abedi’s father would read the call to prayer and his brother worked as a volunteer at local mosque.

Emergency services at Manchester Arena after reports of an explosion at the venue during an Ariana Grande gig. (Photo: AP)

British police have arrested eleven persons in connection with the suicide bombing in Manchester on 22 May, including the father and the younger brother of the suicide bomber Salman Abedi.

In the latest of the developments, terror level threats have now been reduced to “severe” from “critical.” It indicates that an attack remains highly likely rather than imminent. The Army troops deployed as a result of Operation Temperer will be reduced from Monday night.

Prime Minister Theresa May said significant activity by the police during the last 24 hours led to the threat being reduced.

The public should be clear about what this means –a threat level of severe means an attack is highly likely. The country should remain vigilant.

Prime Minister Theresa May

The counter-terrorism force, Rada, detained the father, Ramadan Abedi, outside his home in the Tripoli suburb of Ayn Zara on Wednesday afternoon. A witness said he was handcuffed by armed men who drove him away in two unmarked vehicles.

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Rada also detained the brother Hashem Abedi, who was born in 1997, on Tuesday evening on suspicion of links to ISIS, spokesman Ahmed Bin Salem said.

He did not give any details on the reasons why the father was arrested.

Hashem Abedi had been in touch with attacker Salman Abedi, Bin Salem said, and was suspected of planning to carry out an attack in the Libyan capital.

We have evidence that he is involved in Daesh (ISIS) with his brother. We have been following him for more than one month and a half. He was in contact with his brother and he knew about the attack.

Ahmed Bin Salem, Spokesperson, Local counter-terrorism force

The number of people in custody has gone up to 11 now.

As it stands, 13 people in total have been arrested in connection with the investigation, of which two people have since been released without charge. A total of 11 men remain in custody for questioning.

Greater Manchester Police statement

The arrests were made after searches in Cheetham Hill area of Manchester, where a controlled explosion was used to gain entry into an address.

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From Son To Killer

According to the Kalam Research think-tank, which has an office in Tripoli, Abedi's father Abu Ismail left Saudi Arabia for London in 1992 and joined the Islamist Libyan Islamic Fighting Group in 1994.

Abedi's father and elder brother Ismail were active at Disbury Mosque in south Manchester, said a trustee of the mosque, Fawzi Haffar. US security officials said Abedi also had a sister named Jomana.

Abu Ismail would read the call to prayer and Ismail worked as a volunteer, Haffar said.

He (Abu Ismail) was devout as far as I know. He’s in Libya and has been for a while.

Fawzi Haffar, Mosque Trustee

Abdalla Yousef, a spokesman for the mosque, said Abedi's father and the rest of the family apart from the two sons had returned to Libya in 2011 after the killing of Gadaffi.

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Salman Abedi, 22, was born in Britain and attended Burnage Boys’ School in south Manchester from 2009 to 2011, the school confirmed. He was a keen Manchester United fan.

"He always had a bit of an attitude problem," Leon Hall, who went to school with him, told the Daily Mail newspaper. "I can’t say I really liked the man."

After leaving school, he went on to begin a business and management course in 2014 at the nearby University of Salford.

Alan Kinsey, 52, who lived in the house opposite Abedi, said he thought there had been just one man for the last 7-8 months and a couple had been living there as well before that.

He said the man used to wear traditional white Islamic dress, was aged in his 20s, 6 ft. 2-4ins (about 1.9 metres), and very skinny.

"No one really interacted with him," Kinsey said.

Carefully Prepared Bomb

The bomb used in the attack appeared to contain carefully packed shrapnel and have a powerful charge, according to leaked photographs from the investigation published by the New York Times on Wednesday.

The pictures showed remnants of a blue Karrimor-branded backpack, which could have been used to carry the device, and a possible detonator, which the investigators believed was held in the bomber's left hand, the newspaper said.

Nuts and screws propelled by the blast were also shown as well as the remains of a 12-volt battery, which could have been the power source, it said.

It also published a diagram showing most of the fatalities occurred in a circle around the bomber, which it said indicated a powerful, high velocity charge.

The preliminary evidence suggested the bomb was made with forethought and care, it said.

The concern is that there may be others out there who helped him to make the bomb. Making a bomb of this sort requires a certain level of expertise and competence.

British Intelligence Source to Reuters

British security services are now trying to work out what turned Abedi, the tall, skinny son of a devout Muslim who opposed former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, into a killer.

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Ariana Grande Cancels Scheduled Concerts

Ariana Grande has suspended her concert tour after a suicide bomber killed 22 people at her performance in Manchester, England, the US pop singer's representatives said on Wednesday.

Grande had been scheduled to perform two shows at London's O2 arena this week as part of her "Dangerous Woman" tour. Both shows have been canceled, as well as performances through 5 June, her record label said in a statement.

Due to the tragic events in Manchester the Dangerous Woman tour with Ariana Grande has been suspended until we can further assess the situation and pay our proper respects to those lost. Our way of life has once again been threatened but we will overcome this together.

Ariana Grande Statement

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(With inputs from Reuters.)