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posted by n1 on Tuesday May 23 2017, @02:49AM   Printer-friendly

The Guardian reports:

At least 19 people were killed and more than 50 injured after an explosion in the foyer area of a crowded Manchester concert hall, which left hundreds of people fleeing in terror. [...] Police said they were dealing with a possible terror incident and counter-terrorism officials were assessing what caused the explosion. Investigators from the police and the domestic security service MI5 were part of the investigation.

Greater Manchester Police statement:

I can confirm the details of events tonight that we currently know. At around 10.33pm last night we received reports of an explosion at the Manchester Arena in the city centre. It was at the conclusion of an Ariana Grande concert.

Currently we have 19 people confirmed to have died and around 50 people injured.

The injured are being treated at six hospitals across Greater Manchester. My thoughts are with all those who have been affected and we are doing all we can to support them.

[...] We are currently treating this as a terrorist incident until we know otherwise. We are working closely with the national counter-terrorism policing network and UK intelligence partners.

Unnamed sources, who have not been directly quoted are widely reported as suspecting this incident was a suicide bombing.

Multiple senior U.S. law enforcement officials briefed by British authorities told NBC News that forensic evidence at the scene — including a body found at the blast site — indicated a suicide attack. British and U.S. law enforcement officials said they believed they had tentatively identified the bomber.

U.S. officials said initial reports indicated that some of the casualties might have been caused by a stampede of concert-goers.

Sky News reports:

Officers carried out a controlled explosion at nearby Cathedral Gardens shortly after 1.30am, but have since confirmed the item they found was abandoned clothing and not suspicious.


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  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 23 2017, @03:41AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 23 2017, @03:41AM (#513956)

    Are you sure? Usually these kinds of events are used as excuses to expand democracy-destroying mass surveillance, something that both the US and the UK governments love. And then when the broader mass surveillance still doesn't completely stop terrorism, that will be used as yet another excuse to expand it.

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