MANCHESTER // Libya’s UN-backed government says it is working with British authorities to identify the “terrorist networks” behind the Manchester concert bombing.
Interior ministry undersecretary Col Abdulsalam Ashour condemned the attack on Thursday and said the Tripoli-based government’s antiterror force was investigating.
British officials have identified the attacker as British-born Salman Abedi, 22, whose family is from Libya. Abedi’s father and younger brother were arrested in Tripoli on Wednesday. A statement from Libya’s Special Deterrence Force claims the brother told investigators both he and Salman belonged to ISIL.
Before his arrest, their father, Ramadan Abedi, said his son was innocent. However, Sky News Arabia reported that Abedi senior was a member of the Libya Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) whose leader Abdul Hakim Belhaj is closely associated with the cleric Ali Al Sallabi, the spiritual head of the Muslim Brotherhood. Al Sallabi is believed to be living in Doha, Qatar with Qatari support.
Police in Tripoli also told Agence France-Presse that Ramadan Abedi was a member of LIFG who found refuge in Britain before returning to fight against the Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi in 2011.
Manchester in north-west England is home to the largest cluster of Libyans in Europe, numbering 21,000, and the community became a hotbed of opposition to dictator Qaddafi, who was killed in 2011.
It contains a diverse range of people from doctors to experienced members of the LIFG, which fought alongside Al Qaeda and the Taliban against the Soviet forces in Afghanistan and, back home, sought to overthrow Qaddafi and replace his regime with an Islamic one..
“If you were a Libyan living outside Libya, you were probably someone who was not very friendly to Qaddafi,” said Raffaello Pantucci, director of international security studies at the Royal United Services Institute security think tank in London. “Within that spectrum, you’d have everyone from secular nationalists to violent Islamists and jihadists, and because they are all fighting the same fight against the same regime, they tend to group together.”
British detectives are trying to work out where Abedi slotted in to the picture of radicalisation among the overlapping circles of allegiance in and around Manchester.
The LIFG has been banned in Britain since 2005, meaning it is considered a terrorist organisation, and it is an offence to be a member, support it or encourage support.
“In the case of the LIFG, quite a lot of them ended up coming to the UK, where they were taking advantage of the fact that the country has a fairly open approach to political dissidents,” said Mr Pantucci. Within the Abedi family, armed struggle was “fairly normalised”, he added.
Reda Fhelboom, a Libyan journalist who has spent many years living in Manchester, said Britain was paying an “entirely predictable” price for allowing Libyan Islamists into the country.
“Everyone knows that hundreds of extremists have taken refuge in Britain,” he said in Tripoli. “For several years, Britain has protected hundreds of extremists who are wanted in their own countries. The attack carried out by a Libyan was entirely predictable. I was not surprised, because every day in Manchester I see Libyan extremists from the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group and others walking around at liberty.”
Libyan refugee Abdalraouf Abdallah, 23, was jailed for five and a half years in July last year, when he was convicted of trying to help other Manchester-based extremists to join ISIL. Abdallah lived in Moss Side in south Manchester, a short drive from the Abedi family home.
Meanwhile fellow Mancunian Raphael Hostey, who left Britain in 2013 and is believed to have been killed in a 2016 drone strike, is thought to have recruited several young Britons to fight for ISIL and is thought to have formed a “significant connection” to Abedi.
Salah Suhbi, a member of parliament in Libya who grew up in Sheffield, northern England, said Manchester Libyans had grown increasingly concerned about radicalisation in the city.
“There’s a recruitment policy, we’ve been warning about it for years,” he said. “People have been talking about this for the past three or four years, how ruthless they [extremist recruiters] are. These people are recruiting from the second and third-generation Libyan Brits or Arab Brits.”
Mohamed Fadil, spokesman for the Libyan community in Manchester, said they were shocked by Monday’s attack but admitted there was a problem in their midst that needed to be tackled.
Mr Fadil said the community met in the aftermath of the suicide attack to address the issue. “The general consensus is there is a problem. Maybe we’re not reaching out enough to our young people,” he said.
As the manhunt continued for the network behind Monday’s bombing, US president Donald Trump threatened to prosecute those responsible for leaking investigation details to the US media.
London reacted furiously after sensitive details about the investigation into the attack which killed 22 people appeared in the American press. The US media named Salman Abedi before his name was released in Britain and the following day, The New York Times published photographs of what is thought to be the detonator Abedi used to set off his nail bomb.
“We are furious. This is completely unacceptable,” a government ministry source said of the images.
As a result of the leaks, Britain said it will no longer share intelligence regarding this attack. In Brussels for a Nato summit on Thursday, prime minister Theresa May confronted President Trump over the issue.
“She expressed the view that the intelligence sharing relationship we have with the US is hugely important and valuable, but that the information that we share should be kept secure,” said the prime minister’s spokesman.
Mr Trump, who led Nato allies in paying respects to the victims, slammed the alleged leaks as “deeply troubling”, adding, “If appropriate, the culprit should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Libyan officials said Abedi’s brother Hashem had been under surveillance for six weeks and said investigators had information he was planning “a terrorist attack” in Tripoli. A relative told Agence France-Presse that Abedi had travelled to Manchester from Libya four days before the bombing. German police said Abedi made a brief stopover at Dusseldorf Airport, while a Turkish official said he had transited through Istanbul airport without saying where he was travelling from.
A source close to the family said Abedi wanted to avenge the murder in Manchester last year of a friend of Libyan descent, with his sister Jomana Abedi also telling the Wall Street Journal he was driven by a desire for revenge.
“I think he saw children – Muslim children – dying everywhere, and wanted revenge. He saw the explosives America drops on children in Syria, and he wanted revenge,” she said.
British officials said Abedi had been on the intelligence radar before the massacre.
Three days after the attack, 23 of the 75 people still in hospital are in critical condition.
* Agence France-Presse and Associated Press
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
Company Profile
Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8
THE TWIN BIO
Their favourite city: Dubai
Their favourite food: Khaleeji
Their favourite past-time : walking on the beach
Their favorite quote: ‘we rise by lifting others’ by Robert Ingersoll
Directed: Smeep Kang
Produced: Soham Rockstar Entertainment; SKE Production
Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Jimmy Sheirgill, Sunny Singh, Omkar Kapoor, Rajesh Sharma
Rating: Two out of five stars
If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
The tours: The Tour for Muggles usually runs several times a day, lasts about two-and-a-half hours and costs £14 (Dh67)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on now at the Palace Theatre. Tickets need booking significantly in advance
Entrance to the Harry Potter exhibition at the House of MinaLima is free
The hotel: The grand, 1909-built Strand Palace Hotel is in a handy location near the Theatre District and several of the key Harry Potter filming and inspiration sites. The family rooms are spacious, with sofa beds that can accommodate children, and wooden shutters that keep out the light at night. Rooms cost from £170 (Dh808).
INDIA'S TOP INFLUENCERS
Bhuvan Bam
Instagram followers: 16.1 million
Bhuvan Bam is a 29-year-old comedian and actor from Delhi, who started out with YouTube channel, “BB Ki Vines” in 2015, which propelled the social media star into the limelight and made him sought-after among brands.
Kusha Kapila
Instagram followers: 3.1 million
Kusha Kapila is a fashion editor and actress, who has collaborated with brands including Google. She focuses on sharing light-hearted content and insights into her life as a rising celebrity.
Diipa Khosla
Instagram followers: 1.8 million
Diipa Khosla started out as a social media manager before branching out to become one of India's biggest fashion influencers, with collaborations including MAC Cosmetics.
Komal Pandey
Instagram followers: 1.8 million
Komal Pandey is a fashion influencer who has partnered with more than 100 brands, including Olay and smartphone brand Vivo India.
Nikhil Sharma
Instagram followers: 1.4 million
Nikhil Sharma from Mumbai began his online career through vlogs about his motorcycle trips. He has become a lifestyle influencer and has created his own clothing line.
Source: Hireinfluence, various
The Specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 118hp
Torque: 149Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Price: From Dh61,500
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
OPINIONS ON PALESTINE & ISRAEL
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
Company profile
Name: JustClean
Based: Dubai with offices in other GCC countries
Launch year: 2016
Number of employees: 160+ with 21 nationalities in eight cities
Sector: online laundry and cleaning services
Funding: $30m from Kuwait-based Faith Capital Holding and Gulf Investment Corporation
Biography
Favourite book: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Holiday choice: Anything Disney-related
Proudest achievement: Receiving a presidential award for foreign services.
Family: Wife and three children.
Like motto: You always get what you ask for, the universe listens.
Read more from Kareem Shaheen
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: SmartCrowd
Started: 2018
Founder: Siddiq Farid and Musfique Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech / PropTech
Initial investment: $650,000
Current number of staff: 35
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Various institutional investors and notable angel investors (500 MENA, Shurooq, Mada, Seedstar, Tricap)
ROUTE TO TITLE
Round 1: Beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-1, 6-2
Round 2: Beat Naomi Osaka 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
Round 3: Beat Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 6-2
Round 4: Beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 6-0
Quarter-final: Beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2
Semi-final: Beat Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4
Final: Beat Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2
The specs: McLaren 600LT
Price, base: Dh914,000
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 600hp @ 7,500rpm
Torque: 620Nm @ 5,500rpm
Fuel economy 12.2.L / 100km
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: CarbonSifr
Started: 2022
Based: Dubai
Founders: Onur Elgun, Mustafa Bosca and Muhammed Yildirim
Sector: Climate tech
Investment stage: $1 million raised in seed funding
Pieces of Her
Stars: Toni Collette, Bella Heathcote, David Wenham, Omari Hardwick
Director: Minkie Spiro
Rating:2/5
Company profile
Company name: Fasset
Started: 2019
Founders: Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $2.45 million
Current number of staff: 86
Investment stage: Pre-series B
Investors: Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures, FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, local family offices
RESULTS
6.30pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 – Group 1 (PA) $49,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner RB Frynchh Dude, Pat Cosgrave (jockey), Helal Al Alawi (trainer)
7.05pm Al Bastakiya Trial – Conditions (TB) $50,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner El Patriota, Vagner Leal, Antonio Cintra
7.40pm Zabeel Turf – Listed (TB) $88,000 (Turf) 2,000m
Winner Ya Hayati, Mickael Barzalona, Charlie Appleby
8.15pm Cape Verdi – Group 2 (TB) $163,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner Althiqa, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby
8.50pm UAE 1000 Guineas – Listed (TB) $125,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Soft Whisper, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor
9.25pm Handicap (TB) $68,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner Bedouin’s Story, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor
The specs: 2018 Bentley Bentayga V8
Price, base: Dh853,226
Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 550hp @ 6,000pm
Torque: 770Nm @ 1,960rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.4L / 100km
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dengue fever symptoms
High fever (40°C/104°F)
Severe headache
Pain behind the eyes
Muscle and joint pains
Nausea
Vomiting
Swollen glands
Rash
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
RESULT
Norway 1 Spain 1
Norway: King (90+4')
Spain: Niguez (47')
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Shaffra
Started: 2023
Based: DIFC Innovation Hub
Sector: metaverse-as-a-Service (MaaS)
Investment: currently closing $1.5 million seed round
Investment stage: pre-seed
Investors: Flat6Labs Abu Dhabi and different PCs and angel investors from Saudi Arabia
Number of staff: nine
2018 ICC World Twenty20 Asian Western Regional Qualifier
Saturday results
Qatar beat Kuwait by 26 runs
Bahrain beat Maldives by six wickets
UAE beat Saudi Arabia by seven wickets
Monday fixtures
Maldives v Qatar
Saudi Arabia v Kuwait
Bahrain v UAE
* The top three teams progress to the Asia Qualifier
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
A QUIET PLACE
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Joseph Quinn, Djimon Hounsou
Director: Michael Sarnoski
Rating: 4/5
The Iron Claw
Director: Sean Durkin
Starring: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Maura Tierney, Holt McCallany, Lily James
Rating: 4/5
Bib Gourmand restaurants
Al Khayma
Bait Maryam
Brasserie Boulud
Fi'lia
folly
Goldfish
Ibn AlBahr
Indya by Vineet
Kinoya
Ninive
Orfali Bros
Reif Japanese Kushiyaki
Shabestan
Teible