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Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Police continue hunt for Salman Abedi's 'terror network'

Police investigating the Manchester Arena attack are looking into a possible "terror network" following the arrest of eight people in the UK.

Greater Manchester chief constable Ian Hopkins said: "It's very clear that this is a network that we are investigating."

Six men were taken into custody after a series of raids across Manchester, Wigan and Nuneaton, Warwickshire on Wednesday.

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One of those arrested was the bomber's older brother, 23-year-old Ismail Abedi.

Two men were then arrested on Thursday, one following a search of an address in the Withington area.

A woman who was arrested in connection with the attack, but has now been released without charge.

Meanwhile, the father and brother of the bomber, Salman Abedi, have also been arrested in Libya.

Ramadan Abedi, and 20-year-old Hashem Abedi were arrested by counter-terror police in the capital Tripoli.

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Hashem Abedi is believed to have known about his elder brother's plot to detonate the nail bomb, and is also suspected of planning to carry out his own attack in Tripoli.

When arrested he is reported to have told Libyan authorities: "I have ideology with my brother … I know everything about my brother, what he was doing there in Manchester."

There was no reason given for the arrest of father Ramadan Abedi, who was detained outside his home.

Before his arrest Ramadan had insisted his son Salman was innocent.

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He said: "We don't believe in killing innocents. This is not us."

In developments overnight, police carried out a controlled explosion at a property in the Moss Side area of Manchester.

Two other controlled explosions took place earlier in the week as part of the ongoing investigation.

CCTV images have also been obtained by Sky News, appearing to show Abedi buying the rucksack police believe he used to conceal the bomb.

The footage taken from the Arndale shopping centre in Manchester was filmed just three days before the attack.

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After the UK's terror threat level was raised to critical, almost 1,000 military personnel have been deployed at key sights around the UK.

Police have now identified all 22 victims, and the Government has announced that a minute's silence will be held to honour all those affected by the attack.

Meanwhile, Greater Manchester police have warned of fraudulent fund raising pages on the internet, urging well-wishers to only donate to the official JustGiving page.

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