JEDDAH: The suicide bomber who killed 22 people at a concert in the British city of Manchester on Monday had “likely” been to Syria, French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said Wednesday.
He told BFM TV that British intelligence services had informed their French counterparts that 22-year-old Salman Abedi, who was of Libyan origin, “grew up in Britain and then suddenly, after a trip to Libya and then likely to Syria, became radicalized and decided to carry out this attack.”
Collomb said it was “possible” that Abedi had had assistance from other people, adding: “In any case, the links with Daesh are proven.”
Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack at the concert by US pop star Ariana Grande in which many children were killed.
The French minister, who took office only last week, added: “At the moment, we know only what British investigators have told us.”
Baker Atyani, a veteran journalist with two decades of covering militant groups, told Arab News on Wednesday that there was no doubt that the attack was carried out by Daesh.
"They officially claimed responsibility for the Manchester suicide attack but did not name the man who carried out the attack," he said.
Atyani said the attack was aimed at easing the pressure on Daesh in Syria and Iraq. "They want to open new fronts so that the attention of the international coalition that is fighting them in Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria is diverted," he said.
He said the Daesh strategy was pretty clear from two or three videos that were released last month — both coming from Raqqa.
"In those videos, foreign fighters, especially from Europe including Britain, are seen calling on their supporters and followers in the West to carry out lone-wolf attacks," said Atyani.
“They are seen urging their followers and sympathizers to use whatever means are available in order to carry out terror attacks. They are essentially asking their supporters to get the anti-Daesh forces busy on other fronts and to open new theaters of conflict.”
Atyani said the Manchester attack revealed a serious security lapse on the part of British authorities.
“The main question that British authorities need to answer is this: How was the suicide bomber able to bring the explosives that he used in his suicide belt?
“The use of explosives indicates that he was not alone and that this was part of a large cell,” he said. “Because somebody brought the material in and someone else prepared the bomb for him.”
“Yes, the attacker came from Manchester. We have heard that his family lived in Manchester so he was familiar with the topography of the city. He knew the place but the real question is: Where did the explosives come from?”
Atyani said even if the man had not been allowed into the arena where the concert was taking place, he would have blown himself up somewhere else.
“Busting the network of terrorists is important because only this will show how Daesh cells are operating. How are they operating in the West? Where are they bringing these kinds of explosives from?” he asked, adding. “The reports indicate it was a very sophisticated bomb.”
He said making or assembling the bomb itself was not difficult. “It is easy assembling the bomb but it is not easy to buy the material,” he said.
He said the material was surely procured from outside the UK. “The material must have been brought from somewhere in Europe. The bomb was not made locally,” he said.
Atyani said such attacks would continue. “Whenever they find an opportunity, they will strike,” he said.
According to him, hitting Daesh in Raqqa is not helping. “They are in Syria and Iraq. You know where they are. They are organized and structured. When they lose territory, they will disperse just as Al-Qaeda did in the past.”
“Some of them will return to their original countries; some of them will stay in Syria and some of them will be killed. Some of them will be arrested but the rest will regroup and try to strike wherever they can,” said Atyani.
He sees no end to the cycle of violence “unless we address the reasons and causes for the violence,” he said.
On Wednesday, British security forces raided an apartment in central Manchester as they investigated a network of people allegedly behind the concert bombing. Hundreds of soldiers were sent to secure key sites across the country, including Buckingham Palace and Parliament.
Home Secretary Amber Rudd said Abedi, “likely” did not act alone.
Abedi, British citizen born to Libyan parents grew up around Manchester; he died in the attack.
In Libya, authorities arrested Abedi’s father and a younger brother. The anti-terror force that took the brother, 18-year-old Hashim, into custody said he had confessed that both he and his brother were a part of Daesh and that he, Hashim Abedi, had been aware of the details of the attack.
The father, Ramadan Abedi, denied his son’s involvement in an interview with The Associated Press earlier Wednesday, saying “We don’t believe in killing innocents.”
Another man taken into custody Tuesday in Manchester was identified by Abedi’s father as another son, 23-year-old Ismail.
— With input from AP
Manchester attack aimed at easing pressure on Daesh in Iraq, Syria, expert tells Arab News
Manchester attack aimed at easing pressure on Daesh in Iraq, Syria, expert tells Arab News
China says top military official Miao Hua suspended, under investigation
- Latest senior apparatchik to fall in a sweeping crackdown on graft in the country’s armed force
- Unconfirmed reports say defense minister Dong Jun was also placed under investigation for corruption
The ruling Chinese Communist Party “has decided to suspend Miao Hua from duty pending investigation,” Wu Qian, spokesman of China’s Ministry of Defense, told a press briefing.
Wu did not provide further details about the charges against Admiral Miao, a member of Beijing’s powerful Central Military Commission.
But “serious violations of discipline” are commonly used by officials in China as a euphemism for corruption.
The announcement follows reports, unconfirmed by Beijing, that Defense Minister Dong Jun has been placed under investigation for corruption.
If confirmed, Dong would be the third Chinese defense minister in a row to be probed for graft.
India’s parliament suspended temporarily after row over allegations against Adani group
- The problem is that India’s states are unprepared for the rapid rise in renewable generating capacity, lack adequate transmission infrastructure and storage
NEW DELHI: Both houses of Indian parliament were suspended temporarily on Thursday within minutes of opening as opposition lawmakers disrupted proceedings for the third day this week seeking a discussion on allegations against the Adani Group.
US authorities have accused Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and managing director of Adani Green, Vneet S. Jaain, of being part of a scheme to pay bribes of $265 million to secure Indian solar power supply contracts, and misleading US investors during fund raises there.
“We want a discussion on this in parliament. It is going to be the third day that we are demanding a reply from the prime minister” on the Adani issue, Manickam Tagore, a lawmaker from the main opposition Congress party, which has been leading the protests against the business group, told news agency ANI.
Many of India’s opposition parties accuse Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of favoring Adani and blocking investigations against him in India, accusations both have denied.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who has been a vocal critic of Adani, said Gautam Adani, 62, should be arrested.
While the government has not made any comment on the indictment, Modi’s BJP has said it had no reason to defend Adani, adding that the party was not against industrialists and considered them partners in nation-building efforts.
“Let him defend himself,” BJP spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal said on Tuesday, adding that the law would take its course.
Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing
- Torrential rain in the province since last week had caused flash floods and landslides in four different districts
- Extreme weather is expected in Indonesia toward the end of 2024, as the La Nina phenomenon increases rainfalls across the tropical archipelago
JAKARTA: Indonesian rescuers are searching for passengers trapped in a minibus buried in mud after flash floods and landslides hit several locations in North Sumatra province, killing at least 27, an official said on Thursday.
Torrential rain in the province since last week had caused flash floods and landslides in four different districts, Indonesia’s disaster agency has said.
A landslide in a village in Deli Serdang on Wednesday killed seven and injured 20, Hadi Wahyudi, North Sumatra police spokesperson told Reuters.
Rescuers were looking for missing people, including those trapped in a minibus and other vehicles on a hilly interprovince road hit by a mudslide, he said, adding he could not give an estimate for the number of affected people.
In other places, rescuers have found 20 dead during a search that started over the weekend. They are still searching for two missing.
“Today, we’re focusing our search to find missing people and clearing the roads affected by the landslides,” said Hadi, adding excavators were deployed.
The landslides and flash floods damaged houses, mosques, and rice fields.
Heavy rains also triggered floods in the provincial capital of Medan, forcing a delay in votes for a regional election in some polling stations.
Extreme weather is expected in Indonesia toward the end of 2024, as the La Nina phenomenon increases rainfalls across the tropical archipelago, the country’s weather agency has warned.
The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16
- The bill that would make social media platforms liable for fines of up to $33 million for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts
MELBOURNE: The Australian Senate was debating a ban on children younger than 16 years old from social media Thursday after the House of Representatives overwhelmingly supported the age restriction.
The bill that would make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts.
It is likely to be passed by the Senate on Thursday, the Parliament’s final session for the year and potentially the last before elections, which are due within months.
The major parties’ support for the ban all but guarantees the legislation will become law. But many child welfare and mental health advocates are concerned about unintended consequences.
Unaligned Sen. Jacqui Lambie complained about the limited amount of time the government gave the Senate to debate the age restriction, which she described as “undercooked.”
“I thought this was a good idea. A lot of people out there thought it was a good idea until we looked at the detail and, let’s be honest, there’s no detail,” Lambie told the Senate.
Opposition Sen. Maria Kovacic said the bill was not radical but necessary.
“The core focus of this legislation is simple: It demands that social media companies take reasonable steps to identify and remove underage users from their platforms,” Kovacic told the Senate.
“This is a responsibility these companies should have been fulfilling long ago, but for too long they have shirked these responsibilities in favor of profit,” she added.
Sen. David Shoebridge, from the minor Greens party, said mental health experts agreed that the ban could dangerously isolate many children who used social media to find support.
“This policy will hurt vulnerable young people the most, especially in regional communities and especially the LGBTQI community, by cutting them off,” Shoebridge told the Senate.
The House of Representatives on Wednesday overwhelmingly carried the bill 102 votes to 13.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland urged senators to pass the bill which she said reflected the Australian community’s view.
“The ... government is on the side of supporting parents and protecting young people,” Rowland told the House.
Once the legislation becomes law, the platforms would have one year to work out how they could implement the ban before penalties are enforced.
The platforms complained that the law would be unworkable, and urged the Senate to delay the vote until at least June next year when a government-commissioned evaluation of age assurance technologies made its report on how young children could be excluded.
Critics argue the government is attempting to convince parents it is protecting their children ahead of general elections due by May. The government hopes that voters will reward it for responding to parents’ concerns about their children’s addiction to social media. Some argue the legislation could cause more harm than it prevents.
Criticisms include that the legislation was rushed through Parliament without adequate scrutiny, is ineffective, poses privacy risks for all users, and undermines parental authority to make decisions for their children.
Opponents of the bill also argue the ban would isolate children, deprive them of the positive aspects of social media, drive them to the dark web, discourage children too young for social media to report harm and reduce incentives for platforms to improve online safety.
Explosions heard in Ukraine’s Odesa, Kropyvnytskyi – media reports
- Odesa regional governor Oleh Kiper urged residents to stay in shelter in a message on the Telegram app
Explosions were heard in the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa and the city of Kropyvnytskyi in central Ukraine on Thursday morning amid reports of a Russian cruise missile attack, Ukrainian news outlet Zerkalo Tyzhnya and other local media reported.
Odesa regional governor Oleh Kiper urged residents to stay in shelter in a message on the Telegram app.