Arrest of Two More Individuals in Connection with Manchester Suicide Attack

Five days after the suicide attack at a concert in Manchester, UK, the police announced that two more men were arrested on Saturday, June 6. Following these arrests, Prime Minister Theresa May stated that the country's alert level would be downgraded from 'critical' to 'severe.' The recent arrests by British police are part of an effort to uncover a network believed to be behind the incident. According to Reuters, security forces used controlled explosives to enter the suspects' residences. Authorities are currently interrogating 11 men who have been arrested so far, suspected of assisting Salman Abedi, the main perpetrator of the Manchester attack. As of Saturday, prior to the new command from May, the entire UK was in a state of maximum emergency alert, indicating an imminent threat of another attack. In this context, military forces are also prepared to join the police, and hospital staff across the country have been advised to be ready for another attack. The Times reported on Saturday that British intelligence has identified 23,000 jihadist extremists across the country. Intelligence agencies previously announced they are prepared to conduct 500 counter-terrorism operations, involving about 3,000 individuals who may pose a potential threat. Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the opposition Labour Party, stated in his latest comments regarding the Manchester suicide attack that the government is responsible for minimizing the likelihood of terrorist incidents by providing necessary funding for the police. Following the terrorist attack in Manchester, both Jeremy Corbyn and Theresa May suspended their parties' election campaigns. The UK parliamentary elections are scheduled for June 8. The Manchester attack is the deadliest terrorist incident in the UK since 2005, when the al-Qaeda group killed 52 people in bombings at several London subway stations. The Manchester incident has also drawn severe criticism towards the British government for reducing police funding. The suicide bombing during the concert in Manchester on Monday night resulted in 22 deaths and numerous injuries, with over 60 individuals still hospitalized. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for this attack.