Manchester: The latest from CNN
May 23rd, 2017Prime Minister Theresa May announced Tuesday that the UK has raised its threat level to “critical” — the highest level — for the first time in a decade. The level suggests intelligence services believe an attack is “imminent.”
The action comes a day after a suicide bombing killed 22 people and injured dozens at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England.
Police have identified 22-year old Salman Abedi as the suspected attacker. He was born and raised in the United Kingdom, the Prime Minister said.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack but offered no proof. A British counterterrorism official told CNN that no evidence links the suspect to an established terror group.
Grande has suspended her tour. “Broken. From the bottom of my heart, i am so so sorry. i don’t have words,” the singer tweeted.
Eight-year-old Saffie Rose Roussos and 18-year-old Georgina Callander were among the first victims identified in the attack.
Key questions for investigators, according to CNN National Security Analyst Peter Bergen: Where was the bomb constructed? What chemicals were used? And how did the perpetrator learn to build the bomb?
The blast marked the deadliest terror attack on British soil since the 2005 London bombings.