Manchester, United Kingdom. The Islamic terrorist group ISIS has come forward to claim the terrorist bombing at a musical event in England that has claimed 22 lives presently.
Islamic State claimed Tuesday that one of its terrorists carried out an apparent suicide blast in Manchester that killed at least 22 people, including teenagers and others streaming out of a pop concert held in the late evening. Islamic State did not give any details about the attacker or how the blast was carried out late Monday. Its statement was posted on the online messaging service Telegram and later noted by the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors terrorist websites for updates.
The claim came as British anti-terrorist investigators appeared to narrow their probe on one suspected assailant whose name was not made public and police teams fanned out around the northern city after the worst terrorist strike in Britain in more than a decade to question, gather evidence and fill in the blanks on the unknown ISIS operative responsible for the deadly blast.
British Prime Minister Theresa May called the carnage a “callous terrorist attack.” Other condemnations from other leaders poured in from around the world. Scottish leader Ruth Davidson, who had considered attending the event, was crestfallen in her grief according to intimate sources.
“This attack stands out for its appalling, sickening cowardice deliberately targeting innocent defenseless children and young people who should have been enjoying one of the most memorable nights of their lives,” she said, speaking outside her Downing Street offices, where flags were lowered to half-staff.
The Greater Manchester Police said in a statement that they arrested a 23-year-old man in south Manchester in connection with the attack, as hundreds of police swarmed through the city in the aftermath of the blast.This lend credence to the theory that it was an organized attack by a number of persons, any number of which could still be at large.
American Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats said Tuesday that despite the Islamic State’s claim of responsibility for the Manchester attack, “we have not verified yet the connection.” He noted in a Senate hearing that “they claim responsibility for virtually every attack.”
Casualties in the blast included ages as young as elementary school students. Police said that among the 59 people injured, a dozen were under 16 years old. Among those killed, Georgina Callander, an 18-year-old student, was the first victim to be named. British media also reported that an 8-year-old girl, Saffie Rose Roussos, could have been the youngest fatality.