British police resume sharing bombing investigation info with the U.S. after fury over leaks
Home searches across Manchester have uncovered important items for the investigation into the concert bombing that left 22 people dead. (Sign up for our free video newsletter here http://bit.ly/2n6VKPR)
Reporting from London — British police said Thursday they had resumed sharing intelligence about the Manchester bombing with U.S. authorities, despite concern about leaks by overseas intelligence sources.
Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley said British officials had received fresh assurances about stopping the unauthorized sharing of information.
“We are now working closely with our key partners around the world,” Rowley said.
British authorities earlier expressed widespread outrage over leaks by overseas intelligence sources, saying they had caused great “distress” to those affected by the Manchester terrorist attack.
Ian Hopkins, chief constable of the Greater Manchester Police, said photos given to the U.S. media showing fragments of the explosive and a shredded backpack allegedly used by suicide bomber Salman Abedi had compounded victims’ grief.
“It is absolutely understandable that this has caused much distress for families that are already suffering terribly with their loss,” he said.
British Prime Minister Theresa May said she would take her concerns directly to President Trump when the pair come face to face at a NATO summit in Brussels.
“I will make clear to President Trump that intelligence that is shared between our law enforcement agencies must remain secure,” she said in London after a meeting of the government’s emergency interagency committee. “We have a special relation with the USA. It is [the] deepest defense and security partnership that we have. Of course, that partnership is built on trust, and part of that trust is knowing the intelligence can be shared confidently.”
President Trump said he found the leaks “deeply troubling” and was calling for a complete review into the matter and, if appropriate, for the culprit to be prosecuted.
Multiple leaks have appeared in the U.S. media from law enforcement sources outside Britain in the last week, including the name of the suspected bomber, which British authorities were deliberately withholding during the early stages of the investigation.
Manchester police reportedly decided to temporarily stop sharing information on their investigation with the U.S. on Thursday until they received some promise the leaks would stop.
The issue is likely to come to the forefront again on Friday when May leads a discussion on counter-terrorism and collaboration during a meeting with Group of 7 leaders.
Meanwhile, British authorities nearly doubled estimates of the number of people injured in Monday’s bombing at the Manchester Arena at the conclusion of an Ariana Grande concert.
In addition to the 22 killed, the National Health Service said 116 people have been treated in hospitals for injuries, 23 of them critically wounded — well above the 59 previously reported.
The agency also sent an alert to England’s 27 major trauma centers, urging them to be prepared as Britain gears up for a three-day weekend.
Queen Elizabeth II paid a visit to the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital on Thursday, where she met with some of the youngest victims, their families and staff who worked around the clock to treat the injured.
“It’s dreadful,” the monarch said as she chatted to 14-year-old Evie Mills and her parents. “Very wicked, to target that sort of thing.”
Britain fell silent for a minute on Thursday morning to pay tribute to the victims of the bombing as police raids, searches and arrests continued across the city.
Authorities said they now have eight people in custody in connection with Monday night’s attack, in which Abedi detonated an explosive as children and adults filed out of a pop concert.
After an intense three days of work, including a large amount of overnight activity, the arrests that have taken place are “significant,” Hopkins said.
The people in custody are all male; a woman arrested on Wednesday has been released without charge, he said.
One of Abedi’s brothers is among those arrested in Manchester, and another brother and his father are under arrest in Tripoli, Libya.
Before his detention, the father, Ramadan Abedi, had protested his son’s innocence and reportedly said he did not believe he had any ties to militants, adding, “We don’t’ believe in killing innocents.”
But Abedi placed a final phone call to his family shortly before his suicide mission, in which he reportedly told his mother, “Forgive me.”
Authorities were trying desperately to piece together Abedi’s movements in recent months to establish what connection, if any, he had to the militant group Islamic State, which has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Reports have emerged about a trip Abedi made to Syriaand.
Hopkins said searches at many of the addresses where arrests have been made are continuing and local residents should expect disruptions for several more days.
“It is vitally important that we continue those searches and do it very, very thoroughly,” he said, adding that items recovered at those addresses are believed to be important to the investigation.
The threat level in the U.K. remains at “critical” — meaning another attack could be imminent — and nearly 1,000 armed forces have been deployed at key sites around the country to bolster the armed police.
Armed police officers will also begin patrolling trains up and down the country for the first time to “disrupt and deter criminal activity,” British Transport Police said.
The public is being urged to remain vigilant, and police are not taking any chances with any reports of suspicious activity.
On Thursday morning, an Army bomb disposal unit was sent to Manchester’s Hulme neighborhood to investigate a package.
Roads were closed and a large police cordon was set up as police swarmed the area. Authorities later said that the incident was not necessarily linked to the wider investigation, but it was a clear indication of how tense communities around the country feel.
New details also emerged Thursday about the bomber’s movements in the days before he blew himself up.
German magazine Focus reported that Abedi traveled through Dusseldorf Airport four days before the attack and that authorities are trying to establish whether he met with any extremists while in the country.
The magazine said he also flew from Frankfurt to Britain in 2015.
The city’s two rival soccer teams — Manchester United and Manchester City — have also joined forces to donate a million British pounds to a fund set up in support of the victims of the bombing.
Families of the victims have said the global outpouring of grief and support has been overwhelming, but hugely comforting. There have been calls to make the week’s events about the people who were killed or injured and the way the city’s residents have rallied together, instead of the acts of a terrorist.
At a Wednesday night vigil, Charlotte Campbell, who had made tearful pleas for help finding her missing 15-year-old daughter, Olivia, addressed the crowd. The mother who’d recently learned that Olivia died in the blast thanked people for their support. And she sent out a message to the wider community.
“Please stay together,” Campbell said, fighting back tears. “Don’t let this beat any of us, please. Don’t let my daughter be a victim.”
Boyle is a special correspondent.
ALSO
Suicide bomber’s father arrested in widening Manchester terrorism investigation
UPDATES:
4:25 p.m: This article was updated to indicate British officials were again sharing information about the Manchester bombing with the U.S. and other nations.
2:38 p.m.: This article was updated with additional comments from British Prime Minister Theresa May.
8:45 a.m.: This article updates throughout with staff reporting.
This article was originally published at 5:55 a.m.
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