Salman Abedi was born in December 1994 in Manchester. He is believed to be of Libyan origin. The identity of the 22-year-old was revealed after teams of armed cops swooped on his address in Fallowfield, Manchester. Eyewitnesses told how bomb disposal officers were spotted entering the house before a controlled explosion took place. MI5 spooks and anti-terror cops are now racing against the clock to uncover Abedi’s links to any possible terror cell. He was carrying an improvised explosive device which he detonated while in the foyer area moments after the popstar’s concert ended. Witnesses told how nuts and bolts were sent flying in the blast at the foyer area as fans made their way to Manchester Victoria train station next door.
The Islamic State terror group has claimed responsibility for the Manchester bomb attack. Hours after the deadly attack ISIS jihadis celebrated the “successful and surprising” attack and claimed it was “revenge for Mosul airstrikes”. One jihadi shared a shot of injured children, saying: “It seems that bombs of the British airforce over children of Mosul and Raqqa has just came back to Manchester.” Former top anti-terror cops have said the terror attack was “well planned” and “sophisticated”. Lee Dodderidge, who used to be a member of the National Counter Terrorism Office (NCTO), told Radio 5 Live: “Alarm bells for me are ringing at the moment because this would have appeared to have taken quite a considerable amount of planning.
