Plan B Forum

Nineteen people have been killed and about 50 injured in a blast at Manchester Arena, police have said.

Witnesses said they heard two loud bangs, reported to be in the foyer, after a pop concert by Ariana Grande.

Greater Manchester Police said there are a "number of confirmed fatalities and others injured".

The cause of the explosion is unknown but the North West Counter Terrorism Unit is treating it as a possible terrorist incident.

BBC Home Affairs Correspondent Daniel Sandford said senior counter-terrorism officers are assembling in London and are liaising with the Home Office.

He said early estimates put the number of fatalities in double figures, although these are not confirmed.

Manchester Victoria station, which is close to the concert venue, has been closed and all trains cancelled. British Transport Police say explosion was in the foyer area of Manchester Arena.

ex-khobar Andy wrote:At the moment the Telegraph is reporting that the perpetrator is a Libyan 22 year old, born in the UK and whose parents escaped Gaddhafi's Libya.

Not trying to defend Gaddhafi, but when I lived in Libya in the late seventies (Gaddhafi had been in power for 10 years by then) the Libyan people I knew were the most generous I have ever known anywhere; I knew Libyan women as friends; the burkha/hijab was unknown; and I could walk around Benghazi at night with less trepidation than I might have in London.

Madmen come in all shapes and sizes and countries of origin.

Lord Jim wrote:An unspeakably vile attack...

Targeting teens and tweens at a concert...the lowest scum of the earth....

Guinevere wrote:

ex-khobar Andy wrote:At the moment the Telegraph is reporting that the perpetrator is a Libyan 22 year old, born in the UK and whose parents escaped Gaddhafi's Libya.

Not trying to defend Gaddhafi, but when I lived in Libya in the late seventies (Gaddhafi had been in power for 10 years by then) the Libyan people I knew were the most generous I have ever known anywhere; I knew Libyan women as friends; the burkha/hijab was unknown; and I could walk around Benghazi at night with less trepidation than I might have in London.

Madmen come in all shapes and sizes and countries of origin.

And religions.

BoSoxGal wrote:Most of the terrorist acts in the US are committed by white Christian males, Meade.

Ee-arr Terrorism,

Last night you deliberately attacked a children’s concert in our great city, Manchester. You you should know that we don’t condone that sort of shit here regardless of our age, race, religion, sex or sexual preference.

You see, when a disgraceful excuse of a human-being attacks our city (let alone a children’s concert you evil, despicable vermin), we do not turn on each other.

You sought to divide us, but your only achievement was bringing us together and making us stronger than ever, today our city was one, and we flipped you and your barbaric ideology the V’s – BIG TIME!

Mancunian means Mancunian, and we will not turn on Muslims anymore than we turned on the Irish in ‘96. You’re scum, not Muslim, that clear yeah?

Mate, we’ve got JD bags older than your terrorist bullshit, and the Manchester Muslim community showed you in the firmest possible way that you DO NOT represent them!

Our Muslim Mancunian brothers and sisters worked through the night around the clock with us. Taxi drivers gave up their night’s pay to transport the stranded home safely, free of charge without any hesitation.

Restaurant owners flung open their doors to create a refuge to help those families cut off from each other to reunite.

And everyday members of the public opened their doors and offered people a safe place to stay, drove into town to offer lifts home for those stranded, whilst others and have queued around the block all day and caused websites to crash to give blood.

NEVER forgetting, of course, as always our emergency services were epic in the face of adversity.

Our community spirit is stronger than any hatred you could hope to poison us with. We embrace multiculturalism better than anywhere else in the world, we’re proud of it, we’ve been doing it for years you muppet, and you probably should have done your homework a bit better.

This is Manchester. We do things differently here – Anthony H Wilson

In a bit knob ‘ed,

The People's Republic of Mancunia

Abedi was born in Manchester on New Year's Eve 1994 to a family believed to be of Libyan origin, the BBC understands.
His parents escaped to Britain as refugees from Libya.
It is thought he has at least three siblings - an elder brother who was born in London, and a younger brother and sister who were born in Manchester.
He went to local schools, was a supporter of Manchester United football team and worked in a bakery.
Abedi is thought to have recently travelled abroad.
Salford University confirmed Abedi had been a student there and said it was assisting police with their inquiries.
A trustee of the Manchester Islamic Centre, also known as the Didsbury Mosque, told the Press Association it was likely Abedi had attended there.
Fawaz Haffar said Abedi's father used to perform the call for prayer at the mosque, and one of his brothers had been a volunteer there.
Mr Haffar stressed the mosque was what he called a moderate, modern, liberal mosque, and he is a member of an organisation liaising with police, the Independent Advisory Group.

UK Raises Threat Level To 'Critical'; Attack 'May Be Imminent'

One day after a bombing claimed at least 22 lives at a concert venue in Manchester, England, Prime Minister Theresa May has announced that the U.K. is raising its terror threat level. The move, declared Tuesday evening, means members of the British military will be deployed throughout the country to supplement its police forces.

"It is a possibility we cannot ignore that there is a wider group of individuals linked to this attack," May said. "It is now concluded, on the basis of today's investigations, that the threat level should be increased for the time being — from 'severe' to 'critical.' "

She added: "This means that their assessment is not only that an attack remains highly likely, but that an attack may be imminent."

The announcement comes just hours after police identified a suspect — 22-year-old Salman Abedi — and ISIS claimed responsibility for the bombing. Greater Manchester Police also announced Tuesday that they had "arrested a 23-year-old man" in connection with Monday's bombing.

In addition to at least one arrest, police tweeted Tuesday that they've "executed warrants, one in Whalley Range, and one in Fallowfield, where a controlled explosion took place." Those areas are next to each other, roughly 5 miles south of Manchester Arena. No further information was released about the activity.
The BBC reports this is only the third time the U.K. has reached the highest terror threat level under its alert system — and the first since 2007.

In her brief speech Tuesday, May said the police request for military support "is part of a well-established plan known as Operation Tempora, in which both the armed forces and the police officers involved are well-trained and well-prepared to work in this kind of environment."

She laid out what to expect from the operation:

"This means that armed police officers responsible for guarding key sites will be replaced by members of the armed forces, which will allow the police to significantly increase the number of armed officers on patrol in key locations.

"You might also see military personnel deployed at certain events such as concerts and sports matches, helping the police to keep the public safe. In all circumstances, members of the armed forces who are deployed in this way will be under the command of police officers."