UK police probe Manchester knifings as 'terrorist' attack

MANCHESTER - A British police probe into a triple stabbing at a Manchester railway station on New Year's Eve which injured 3 people is now being treated as "a terrorist investigation", the city's top officer said on Tuesday.

Counter-terrorism police have arrested a 25-year-old man who remains in custody, and are searching an address where he recently lived in the northwestern English city, Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said.

The suspect reportedly shouted "Allah" during what Hopkins called a "horrific attack" on three people, including a police officer, at Manchester Victoria station on Monday evening.

A man and a woman, both in their 50s, are still being treated in hospital after sustaining "serious" injuries, while the officer was stabbed in the shoulder, Hopkins added.

"We are treating this as a terrorist investigation which is being led by counter-terrorism officers with support from Greater Manchester police," he told a briefing.

"They were working through the night to piece together the details of what happened and to identify the man who was arrested."

Hopkins said counter-terrorism officers were searching an address near the city center "which is believed to be where the man had most recently been living".

Prime Minister Theresa May thanked emergency services for their "courageous response" in swiftly tackling the suspect.

She wrote on Twitter: "My thoughts are with those who were injured in the suspected terrorist attack in Manchester last night."

'PURE FEAR' 

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which happened at around 8:50 pm when many revelers in the city would have been enjoying New Year's Eve celebrations.

Witness Sam Clack, 38, a BBC radio producer, said the suspect shouted "Allah" before and during the attack.

He also quoted the perpetrator as saying: "As long as you keep bombing other countries, this sort of shit is going to keep happening."

The witness added he heard the "most blood-curdling scream" and looked down the platform to see the attack unfolding.

"He came towards me," he added. "I looked down and saw he had a kitchen knife with a black handle with a good 12 inch (30-centimeter) blade.

"It was just fear, pure fear."

Clack said police used a stun gun and pepper spray before "six or seven" officers jumped on the man.

Video footage of the incident shows him being overpowered by the officers.

The police said he was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and officers had recovered two knives from the scene.

The woman suffered injuries to her face and abdomen and the man was wounded in the abdomen, while a British Transport Police officer sustained a stab wound to the shoulder.

Their injuries were described as serious but not life-threatening.

'DREADFUL' 

The city's New Year celebrations went ahead in Albert Square despite the incident, with a firework display taking place as planned, though increased security was brought in.

British Transport Police said Tuesday its officers would be "highly visible through the national rail network".

Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham paid tribute to the emergency services' response.

He added the "vile attack" had "all the hallmarks... of an isolated incident".

Manchester police Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson said they were still trying to establish whether the suspect is a British national and how he came to be at the station.

"We are obviously considering his mental health given how frenzied the attack was, its random nature," he added. 

"There is wide reporting... about what the attacker allegedly said during the incident.

"However it's really important to stress we are retaining an open mind in relation to the motivation for this attack."

Police said investigators were considering its closeness to the Manchester Arena, where a suicide bomber struck in May 2017, as potentially significant.

The attack at a concert by the US singer Ariana Grande killed 22 people and wounded 139.

The perpetrator, Salman Abedi, 22, was born and raised in Manchester.

"That the incident happened so close to the scene of the terrorist attack on May 22, 2017 makes it even more dreadful," chief constable Hopkins said.

"Our work will continue to ensure we get to the full facts of what happened and why it took place."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Music stars unite in Manchester as fans face down fears

Cheers drowned out tears in Manchester on Sunday as Ariana Grande was joined by fellow music stars for a charity concert where fans vowed to face down fears of terrorism after two deadly attacks in Britain.

"Let the world hear your resilience," Pharrell Williams told a sell-out crowd of 50,000 who had gathered to remember victims of a May 22 suicide bomb attack on Grande's concert in the city.

The hastily-organised "One Love Manchester" event became one of the biggest single gatherings of musical talent this year, as stars lined-up for the concert dedicated to the 22 people killed and 116 injured, many of them children.

Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry, Robbie Williams, Take That, Liam Gallagher, and Little Mix were among those who hit the stage, as fans held "We stand together" and "For our angels" signs.

Mumford & Sons frontman Marcus Mumford opened the show after the crowd fell silent for a minute.

Less than 24 hours before the concert got underway, Britain was rocked by another terrorist attack, in central London, in which seven people were killed and 48 injured.

Grande tweeted "Praying for London" while her manager Scooter Braun said the concert would go ahead "with greater purpose".

DANCING POLICE OFFICERS

Fans flocked to the Old Trafford cricket ground for the show, many of them with tears rolling down their cheeks during the performances.

In one heartfelt moment, Grande was joined on stage by children from a local school, some of whom were at the targeted Manchester Arena concert, as the group performed her hit song "My Everything".

Grande and Coldplay's Chris Martin performed "Don't look back in anger", the track by Manchester Britpop band Oasis which crowds sang during vigils in the days following the bombing.

Additional security measures were put in place for the concert, with police warning that everyone would be searched.

But there was also a jovial atmosphere, as police officers and security guards danced with music fans.

Revelers dressed for the occasion, with many wearing tops featuring a bee -- a symbol for Manchester -- and slogans expressing their love for the city.

"We're here to show our support to Manchester more than anything. These people aren't going to dampen our spirits," said 34-year-old Abdullah Mala.

His eight-year-old daughter Hannah had left the Grande concert just before the deadly bombing and said she was "happy to be back" to see some of pop's biggest names.

'OVERCOME THE FEAR'

Proceeds from the concert will be donated to a fund set up to help the victims' families.

Rachel Jea, 32, said she was at Grande's previous Manchester concert and felt it was important to attend Sunday's show to regain trust after the bombing.

"Our grandparents went through world wars so that we could live in freedom and now it's starting again. It just shouldn't be like this," she told AFP.

Her nine-year-old daughter Scarlet adopted a defiant tone, telling others not to be afraid. "We need to try and find a way to overcome the fear. I'm really happy to come tonight, it is good for Ariana, it wasn't her fault what happened."

Grande, who described herself as "broken" following the May 22 bombing, had immediately returned to the US, interrupting her Dangerous Woman world tour and later promising to return for the charity concert.

On Friday the 23-year-old singer made a surprise visit to injured fans being treated at the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital.

Sunday's concert was held on the eve of the first funeral of Manchester attack victims.

The coffin of Eilidh MacLeod, a 14-year-old victim of the bombing, was flown to the Scottish island of Barra and carried across a beach by mourners on Sunday ahead of the funeral.

UNSCRUPULOUS APPLICATIONS'

Those who had attended Grande's May 22 concert were offered free tickets to the Sunday show, while the 35,000 tickets put up for sale on Thursday at £40 each ($51, 46 euros) sold out in minutes.

"Over 10,000 unscrupulous applications", however, were made for free tickets, Ticketmaster said, with people applying despite not having attended the original concert.

Others tried to resell their tickets on eBay for £1,200. The online auction platform has since then pledged to immediately remove any item "which profits in any way from the tragedy in Manchester".

The BBC, Twitter, Apple, YouTube and MTV streamed the concert live, making it available to viewers in 180 countries.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Police arrest 23-year old man over Ariana concert blast

British police said they arrested a 23-year old man in connection with a suicide bomb attack in Manchester which killed 22 people and injured dozens at a British concert by U.S. singer Ariana Grande.

"With regards to last night's incident at the Manchester Arena, we can confirm we have arrested a 23-year-old man in South Manchester," Greater Manchester Police said on Twitter on Tuesday.

A suicide bomber killed at least 22 people and wounded 59 at a packed concert hall in the English city of Manchester in what Prime Minister Theresa May called a sickening act targeting children and young people.

May said police believed they knew the identity of the bomber and police then said a 23-year-old man had been arrested in connection with the attack carried out late on Monday evening as people began leaving a concert given by Ariana Grande, a U.S. singer who attracts a large number of young and teenage fans.

"All acts of terrorism are cowardly...but 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," May said outside her Downing Street office in London.

"The attempt to divide us met countless acts of kindness that brought people closer together."

The northern English city remained on high alert. A Reuters witnesses said they heard a "big bang" at Manchester's Arndale shopping mall and saw people running from the building. Police said they were dealing with an incident inside. The shopping centre reopened soon afterward, a Reuters witness said.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said more police had been ordered onto the streets of the British capital.

Monday's attack was the deadliest in Britain since four British Muslims killed 52 people in suicide bombings on London's transport system in 2005. But it will have reverberations far beyond British shores.

Attacks in cities including Paris, Nice, Brussels, St Petersburg, Berlin and London have shocked Europeans already anxious over security challenges from mass immigration and pockets of domestic Islamist radicalism. The Islamic State militant group has called for attacks as retaliation for Western involvement in the conflicts in Syria and Iraq.

Witnesses related the horror of the Manchester blast, which unleashed a stampede just as the concert ended at what is Europe's largest indoor arena, full to a capacity of 21,000.

"We ran and people were screaming around us and pushing on the stairs to go outside and people were falling down, girls were crying, and we saw these women being treated by paramedics having open wounds on their legs ... it was just chaos," said Sebastian Diaz, 19. "It was literally just a minute after it ended, the lights came on and the bomb went off."

U.S. President Donald Trump described the attack as the work of "evil losers". German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it "will only strengthen our resolve to...work with our British friends against those who plan and carry out such inhumane deeds."

A source with knowledge of the situation said the bomber's explosives were packed with metal and bolts. At least 19 of those wounded were in a critical condition, the source said.

A video posted on Twitter showed fans, many of them young, screaming and running from the venue. Dozens of parents frantically searched for their children, posting photos and pleading for information on social media.

"We were making our way out and when we were right by the door there was a massive explosion and everybody was screaming," concert-goer Catherine Macfarlane told Reuters.

"It was a huge explosion - you could feel it in your chest."

Singer Ariana Grande, 23, said on Twitter: "broken. from the bottom of my heart, i am so so sorry. i don't have words."

May, who faces an election in two-and-a-half weeks, said her thoughts were with the victims and their families. She and Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the opposition Labour Party, agreed to suspend campaigning ahead of the June 8 vote.

SUICIDE BOMBER?

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing, but U.S. officials drew parallels to the coordinated attacks in November 2015 by Islamist militants on the Bataclan concert hall and other sites in Paris that killed 130 people.

"It clearly bears the hallmark of Daesh (Islamic State)," said former French intelligence agent Claude Moniquet, now a Brussels-based security consultant, "because Ariana Grande is a young singer who attracts a very young audience, teenagers.

"So very clearly the aim was to do as much harm as possible, to shock British society as much as possible."

Islamic State supporters took to social media to celebrate the blast and some encouraged similar attacks elsewhere.

Britain is on its second-highest alert level of "severe", meaning an attack by militants is considered highly likely.

British counter-terrorism police have said they are making on average an arrest every day in connection with suspected terrorism.

In March, a British-born convert to Islam ploughed a car into pedestrians on London's Westminster Bridge, killing four people before stabbing to death a police officer who was on the grounds of parliament. The man was shot dead at the scene.

In 2015, Pakistani student Abid Naseer was convicted in a U.S. court of conspiring with al Qaeda to blow up the Arndale shopping center in the center of Manchester in April 2009.

(Reporting by Costas Pitas, Editing by Paul Sandle)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

'Broken' Ariana Grande apologizes after deaths at concert

MANILA – American singer Ariana Grande apologized to her fans after an explosion marred her concert in Manchester, England on Monday night (Tuesday morning in Manila).

In a post on Twitter, Grande wrote: “Broken. From the bottom of my heart, I am so so sorry. I don't have words.”

At least 19 people were killed and 50 others wounded in what Greater Manchester Police described as a "terrorist incident."

Immediately after the blast, a spokesman for Grande, 23, said the singer was "okay."

Grande’s concert was held at the Manchester Arena, the largest indoor arena in Europe, is a popular concert and sporting venue. it has a capacity for 21,000 people, according to its website.

Britain is now on its second-highest alert level of "severe" meaning an attack by militants is considered highly likely.

– with reports from Rose Eclarinal, ABS-CBN News, and Reuters

source: news.abs-cbn.com

At least 22 killed suicide attack at Ariana Grande concert in Britain

MANCHESTER - At least 22 people, including some children, were killed and 59 wounded when a suicide bomber struck as thousands of fans streamed out of a concert by US singer Ariana Grande in the English city of Manchester on Monday.

Prime Minister Theresa May said the incident was being treated as a terrorist attack, making it the deadliest militant assault in Britain since four British Muslims killed 52 people in suicide bombings on London's transport system in July 2005.

Police said the attacker died after detonating explosives shortly after 10:33 pm (5:35 a.m. in Manila) at Manchester Arena, which has the capacity to hold 21,000 people. Children were among the dead, police said.

"We believe, at this stage, the attack last night was conducted by one man," Manchester Chief Constable Ian Hopkins told reporters. "The priority is to establish whether he was acting alone or as part of a network.

"The attacker... died at the arena. We believe the attacker was carrying an improvised explosive device which he detonated causing this atrocity."

A witness who attended the concert said she felt a huge blast as she was leaving the arena, followed by screaming and a rush by thousands of people trying to escape the building.

A video posted on Twitter showed fans, many of them young, screaming and running from the venue. Dozens of parents frantically searched for their children, posting photos and pleading for information on social media.

"We were making our way out and when we were right by the door there was a massive explosion and everybody was screaming," concert-goer Catherine Macfarlane told Reuters.

"It was a huge explosion - you could feel it in your chest. It was chaotic. Everybody was running and screaming and just trying to get out."

Ariana Grande, 23, later said on Twitter: "broken. from the bottom of my heart, i am so so sorry. i don't have words."

May, who faces an election in two-and-a-half weeks, said her thoughts were with the victims and their families. She and Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the opposition Labour Party, agreed to suspend campaigning ahead of the June 8 election.

"We are working to establish the full details of what is being treated by the police as an appalling terrorist attack," May said in a statement. "All our thoughts are with the victims and the families of those who have been affected."

May is due to hold a crisis response meeting.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent his condolences over the blast to Britain's Queen Elizabeth, Chinese state media reported.

The Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs meanwhile said it was seeking confirmation on the condition of Filipinos in England.

 SUICIDE BOMBER?

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but US officials drew parallels to the coordinated attacks in November 2015 by Islamist militants on the Bataclan concert hall and other sites in Paris, which claimed about 130 lives.

Islamic State supporters took to social media to celebrate the blast and some encouraged similar attacks elsewhere.

Britain is on its second-highest alert level of "severe", meaning an attack by militants is considered highly likely.

British counter-terrorism police have said they are making on average an arrest every day in connection with suspected terrorism.

In March, a British-born convert to Islam ploughed a car into pedestrians on London's Westminster Bridge, killing four people before stabbing to death a police officer who was on the grounds of parliament. The man was shot dead at the scene.

In 2015, Pakistani student Abid Naseer was convicted in a US court of conspiring with al Qaeda to blow up the Arndale shopping centre in the centre of Manchester in April 2009.

PARENTS' ANGUISH

Manchester Arena, the largest indoor arena in Europe, opened in 1995 and is a popular concert and sporting venue.

Desperate parents and friends used social media to search for loved ones who attended Monday's concert while the wounded were being treated at six hospitals across Manchester.

"Everyone pls share this, my little sister Emma was at the Ari concert tonight in #Manchester and she isn't answering her phone, pls help me," said one message posted alongside a picture of a blonde girl with flowers in her hair.

Paula Robinson, 48, from West Dalton about 40 miles east of Manchester, said she was at the train station next to the arena with her husband when she felt the explosion and saw dozens of teenage girls screaming and running away from arena.

"We ran out," Robinson told Reuters. "It was literally seconds after the explosion. I got the teens to run with me."

Robinson took dozens of teenage girls to the nearby Holiday Inn Express hotel and tweeted out her phone number to worried parents, telling them to meet her there. She said her phone had not stopped ringing since her tweet.

"Parents were frantic running about trying to get to their children," she said. "There were lots of lots children at Holiday Inn."

(Additional Reporting by Alistair Smout, Kate Holton and David Milliken in LONDON, Mark Hosenball in LOS ANGELES, John Walcott in WASHINGTON, D.C., Leela de Kretser in NEW YORK, Mostafa Hashem in CAIRO, and Ben Blanchard in BEIJING; Writing by Guy Faulconbridge and Nick Tattersall; Editing by Paul Tait and John Stonestreet)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Munoz prepares to face good friend Machida

LAKE FOREST, California – When UFC middleweight contender Mark Muñoz steps inside the Octagon later this week, he’ll be facing more than just an ordinary opponent – he’ll be fighting a friend.

Muñoz, known as “The Filipino Wrecking Machine,” is slated to fight former light-heavyweight champion Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida on October 26 at UFC Fight Night in Manchester, England.

Muñoz and Machida have been good friends for the past two years, and were training with each other just days before Muñoz’s original opponent, Michael Bisping, withdrew from the match after suffering an eye injury.

The UFC then announced the Muñoz-Machida match-up.

“It’s a very big challenge, but at the same time, we’re professionals,” said Muñoz. “This is business. Nothing personal, and the winner is going to buy dinner.

“It’s crazy, it just took us by surprise,” he admitted. “But it is a business, that’ just the way it is. We’ll remain friends afterwards.”

Muñoz and Machida now have a difficult task of fighting one another but also as two people who intimately know each other’s fighting styles.

Riley Ross, one of Muñoz’s trainers, said the key factor for Muñoz is to take the former champion to the ground.

“One takedown, and it’s done. That’s our plan,” said Ross. “There’s no secret about it. We’re not going to stand and trade with a guy like that. But if Machida gets caught trying to defend a takedown, Mark will bring the thunder.”

Muñoz has a lot riding on this fight. A win against Machida could propel his career to new heights and give him a shot at the middleweight championship.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com