Nineteen people have been killed and more than 50 injured in the suspected terror attack on the Manchester Arena. The explosion happened just after the end of a pop concert by the US singer Ariana Grande, who is popular among children and teenagers.
Police say the blast - which unconfirmed reports from two unnamed US officials suggested had been carried out by a suicide bomber - occurred in the arena's foyer.
Prime Minister Theresa May has suspended election campaigning and will chair a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee. She called the explosion an "appalling terrorist attack", with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn describing it as a "terrible incident".
"The whole building shook," said Emma Johnson, who was waiting to pick up her children from the concert when it happened. "There was a blast and then a flash of fire afterwards. There were bodies everywhere."
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Witnesses said that the attack appeared to involve the use of a nail bomb. Nail bombs (often also including nuts, bolts and ballbearings) are used to increase the destructive power of explosives, as the shrapnel increases the bomb’s ability to wound its victims.
The Manchester police are working on the assumption of terrorism. If so, it would be the worst act of terrorism in Britain since the "7/7 bombings" in 2005 on London Transport, which killed 52 people.
Ambulance after Manchester bombing (Photo courtesy Reuters).
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Manchester's location (in red) in the UK. (Map courtesy Pinterest).
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Pete