New arrest in 'Manchester bombing' police sweep

New arrest in 'Manchester bombing' police sweep
UK police say they have arrested a 25-year-old man in its ongoing operations to find suspected accomplices of the Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi.
2 min read
28 May, 2017
Police have raided a home in Moss Side, south Manchester [AFP]
UK police say they have arrested a 25-year-old man in connection with Monday's bombing in Manchester, which left 22 concert-goers dead.

Investigators are conducting a search of a house in connection with the suicide bombing at the Manchester Arena earlier this week.

Officers said they arrested a 25-year-old man on terror charges in Old Trafford and were searching another address in Moss Side, east Manchester, according to a statement from Greater Manchester Police.

A total of 14 people are being held in the UK and Libya in connection with the bombing which was claimed by the Islamic State group.

Police believe that those linked to the attack are now in custody, although investigations are ongoing.

Police also released images of suicide bomber Salman Abedi on Sunday taken from CCTV footage shot just hours before the 22-year-old killed himself and 22 others.

In the stills Abedi can be seen dressed in casual, fashionable clothing carrying a rucksack believed to contain the bomb he detonated in the entrance of the Manchester Arena as crowds were leaving an Arianna Grande concert.

Police in the UK arrested a total of 14 people this week in connection with the attack, releasing a woman and a teenager following questioning. Police launched raids across Manchester, and the nearby towns of Wigan, St Helens and Nuneaton.

Abedi's father and brother are also being held by security forces in Libya.

A spokesperson for the Tripoli-based, UN-backed Government of National Accord announced that the two men were in detention.

He claimed the brother and father were supporters of the Islamic State group and were aware of Abedi's plan to kill.

Abedi had reportedly returned from Libya only a few days before the attack which killed 22 people - a third of them children - and was believed to have fought in the country which has beem torn apart from internal divisions.

In Manchester, thousands of people defied fears and took part in a half-marathon on Sunday, while vigils for those killed have been held.