Manchester attack: 22 dead and 59 hurt in suicide bombing

The Islamic State terrorist group claimed responsibility for Monday's deadly attack at an arena in Manchester
Wounded people inside the Manchester Arena after a bombing at an Ariana Grande concert on Monday evening.
Tuesday, 23 May 2017 17:04

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility Tuesday for the suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester that left 22 people dead and sparked a stampede of young concertgoers.

The United States has not confirmed an Islamic State link to the suicide bombing, the top U.S. intelligence official said on Tuesday. "I might mention that ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack in Manchester although they claim responsibility for virtually every attack. We have not verified yet the connection," Dan Coats, the Director of National Intelligence, told a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, using an acronym for Islamic State.

A suicide bomber killed at least 22 people and wounded 59 at a packed concert hall in the English city of Manchester.

The bomb tore through an entrance hall of the 21,000-seat Manchester Arena at about 10:30 p.m. on Monday as a concert by the American pop star Ariana Grande was ending and as crowds of teenagers had begun to leave, many for an adjacent train station.

Pandemonium ensued, as panicked adolescents struggled to connect with parents and guardians waiting outside to pick them up. As well as those killed, dozens of other people were wounded in the attack; 59 were hospitalised, some with life-threatening injuries.

British police moved quickly, arresting a 23-year-old man in connection with Monday night's bombing, carried out as crowds began leaving a concert given by Ariana Grande, a U.S. singer who attracts a large number of young and teenage fans.

They also raided a property in the district of Fallowfield where they carried out a controlled explosion. Witnesses in the Whalley Range district said armed police had surrounded a newly-built apartment block on a usually quiet tree-lined street.

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.

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.