Politics: Manchester bomber's brothers arrested as police investigate his terror 'network'

Salman Abedi was radicalised during trips to Syria and was known to British intelligence services.

• Police confirm they are investigating a "network" of suspects.
• First pictures of Salman Abedi were released on Wednesday morning.
• Abedi's brothers have been arrested in Manchester and Libya.
• Abedi was born in the UK and turned to radical Islam in recent years. He was known to British spies.
• Abedi went on "secret jihadi training during family trips to Syria."
• His Manchester address was searched on Tuesday, with forensic experts finding a book titled "Know Your Chemicals!"

LONDON — Greater Manchester Police have raided buildings across the city as they investigate the terrorist network of Salman Abedi, who detonated a fatal bomb in the Manchester Arena on Monday night.

"I think it's very clear that it's a network that we are dealing with," Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said on Wednesday afternoon.

Abedi killed 22 and injured at least 64 when he detonated an improvised bomb in the foyer of Manchester Arena in central Manchester on Monday night, where the pop star Ariana Grande was performing.

The 22-year-old suicide bomber was radicalised during trips to Syria and was known to British intelligence services.

On Tuesday, Abedi's brother, 23-year-old Ismail Abedi, was arrested in Chorlton, south Manchester in connection with the attack. His younger brother, Hashem Abedi, was also detained in Tripoli, Libya, on Wednesday, on suspicion of extremist links, Reuters said.

Three other men have been arrested and a block of flats on Granby Row, central Manchester has been raided by armed police. A hunt is underway for the person who made the bomb, police have confirmed.

Home secretary Amber Rudd told Sky News on Wednesday that the Mancunian of Libyan descent was known "up to a point" by British spies and "it seems likely" he wasn't acting alone.

"The security services will know a lot of people, it doesn't mean they are expected to arrest everybody they know. But it is somebody who they had known before," Rudd said.

BBC home affairs correspondent Dominic Casciani said members of the public "called anti-terrorism hotline" warning about Abedi's extreme views "several years ago." It is not clear if this is what Rudd was referring to.

In other news on Wednesday:

• 13 victims of the Manchester Arena attack have been named.
• The father of Abedi has claimed he is innocent.
• Amber Rudd condemned US officials for leaking intelligence on the attack.
• The general election campaign remains on hold out of respect for the victims.
• A man with a knife was arrested at Buckingham Palace.

Who was Salman Abedi?

Abedi died as a result of the bomb. His ID was found at the site of the attack, The New York Times reported, citing a US law enforcement official who spoke anonymously because the investigation is still ongoing.

BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner said Abedi was thought to be acting as a "mule" and his explosive device, described as highly sophisticated, was made by someone else, who remains on the run.

"More Govt announcements expected today," he tweeted.

Salman Abedi, also known as Salman Ramadan Abedi, is believed to have travelled to Manchester from London by train a few days before the attack, Reuters reported. The Islamic State said Tuesday that a "caliphate soldier" was responsible for the attack. The police are yet to find any evidence to support the terrorist group's claim.

Several images of Abedi were published on Wednesday morning.

Abedi was born in Manchester in 1994 and was one of four children to parents who were Libyan refugees who fled to Britain at the height of the Gaddafi regime, the BBC reports.

He attended school in Manchester and went to Salford University before dropping out prior to the second year of his business and management degree. He left the UK for a period of time, reportedly to Libya, but returned just days before the attack. The Financial Times said he was involved with gangs and turned to radical Islam in recent years.

The Sun published the first image of Abedi on Wednesday. It said he had "secret jihadi training during family trips to Syria," making trips to the war-torn country without alerting authorities. French intelligence also suggests he went to Syria, according to reports.

Abedi was registered at a number of addresses in Fallowfield, a suburb of Manchester known for its big student population. He did not make a "strong impression" on those around him, the AP reported, and was hardly known to staff at Salford University.

Alan Kinsey, 52, who lives across the street from the Abedi residence, told the AP he had seen "a lot of different people living there" in the past but in the last six months or more had only seen one young man in his 20s. Kinsey said he would often get picked up by another young man in a Toyota and got home late.

Kinsey added that he thought Abedi "worked in a takeaway or something," because of his late hours.

House search

Law enforcement officials gained entry to Abedi's home Tuesday afternoon after setting off a controlled explosion to get in, the Times reported.

"It was so quick. These cars just pulled up and all these police with guns, dogs, jumped out of the car and said to us: 'Get in the house now,'" Simon Turner, Abedi's 46-year-old neighbour, told the Associated Press.

An unidentified 23-year-old man was arrested in south Manchester in connection with the attack, and armed police officers also raided two addresses near the Chorlton area of Manchester around lunchtime, The Guardian reported.

The pictures below show forensic investigators investigating a home in the Fallowfield area of Manchester believed to be linked to the attacker.

Those concerned about loved ones who may have been in the area during the attack can call 0800 096 0095.

Salman Abedi was radicalised during trips to Syria and was known to British intelligence services. Read Full Story