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Manchester attack: Who was Salman Abedi? Manchester attack: Who was Salman Abedi?
(about 3 hours later)
Police have named 22-year-old Salman Ramadan Abedi as the person suspected of carrying out the suicide attack at Manchester Arena on Monday evening.Police have named 22-year-old Salman Ramadan Abedi as the person suspected of carrying out the suicide attack at Manchester Arena on Monday evening.
The BBC understands that Abedi was a "mule" carrying out the attack for a larger network of collaborators, which is being investigated by Greater Manchester Police.The BBC understands that Abedi was a "mule" carrying out the attack for a larger network of collaborators, which is being investigated by Greater Manchester Police.
But what do we know about the suspected suicide bomber? But what do we know about him?
Abedi was born in Manchester on New Year's Eve 1994 to Libyan parents, who had fled that country after becoming opponents of Colonel Gaddafi's regime. Abedi was born in Manchester on New Year's Eve 1994 to Libyan parents who had fled that country after becoming opponents of Colonel Gaddafi's regime.
Having spent a few years in London, the family moved to Manchester where Abedi's father used to do the call to prayer at a mosque in Didsbury. Having spent a few years in London, the family moved to Manchester where Abedi's father did the call to prayer at a mosque in Didsbury.
Abedi attended Burnage Academy for Boys in Manchester between 2009 and 2011, before going to the Manchester College until 2013 and then Salford University in 2014.
However, he dropped out of university and worked in a bakery.
The BBC understands that the public previously warned authorities about Abedi's extremism.
A community support worker, who did not wish to be named, said several years ago members of the public called an anti-terrorism hotline about Abedi after he publicly said "he was supporting terrorism" and "being a suicide bomber is OK".
Friends remember him as a good footballer, a keen supporter of Manchester United and a user of cannabis. He had a sister and two brothers.Friends remember him as a good footballer, a keen supporter of Manchester United and a user of cannabis. He had a sister and two brothers.
His mother and father are now believed to be back living in Libya. For a while he left the UK too, but he is believed to have returned in the past few days. Abedi attended Burnage Academy for Boys in Manchester between 2009 and 2011, before going to the Manchester College until 2013 and then Salford University in 2014, before dropping out to work in a bakery.
A former classmate of Abedi told the BBC that "he was a very jokey lad" but was at the same time was "very short tempered", saying Abedi would lose his temper over "the littlest thing".
The man, who does not want to be identified, said: "What I realised was he had a short temper but apart from that was a very sound lad."
He said Abedi was "away at random times throughout the year - but I don't know if that was because he was out the country, or just didn't show up to school, because he did hang around with the wrong crowd and was very, very gullible".
"You could tell him anything and he would pretty much fall for it," he added.
By the time he left Burnage Academy for Boys - formerly Burnage High School - in 2011, Abedi had become "more and more religious", later cutting ties with former classmates.
It was while at Manchester College that two people who knew Abedi made separate calls to an anti-terrorism hotline to warn the police about his extremist views.
A community support worker, who did not wish to be named, said they contacted the authorities after he publicly said "he was supporting terrorism" and "being a suicide bomber is OK".
Abedi's family lived at more than one address in the city, including a property at Elsmore Road, in the Fallowfield area, that was raided by police on Tuesday.Abedi's family lived at more than one address in the city, including a property at Elsmore Road, in the Fallowfield area, that was raided by police on Tuesday.
Officers also searched a property in Whalley Range and have carried out raids across Manchester, Wigan and Nuneaton, Warwickshire. His mother and father are now back living in Libya, where his father and younger brother Hashem, 20, are being held by special forces linked to the interior ministry in the Libyan capital Tripoli.
In total eight men are in custody in the UK following the attack, including Abedi's older brother Ismail, 23. For a while Abedi left the UK too, but he returned in the days before the bombing. During his trip back from Libya he briefly stopped off at Düsseldorf Airport, having reportedly been in Prague, but remained in the airport's transit zone.
Abedi's younger brother Hashem, 20, was held by special forces linked to the interior ministry in the Libyan capital Tripoli, as was their father, Ramadan. The BBC also understands Abedi was in Manchester earlier this year, when he told people of the value of dying for a cause and made hardline statements about suicide operations and the conflict in Libya.
Greater Manchester Police would not comment on the claims.
Manchester is home to one of the largest Libyan communities in the UK. Neighbours have talked about the family having a Libyan flag flying in its house at certain times of the year.Manchester is home to one of the largest Libyan communities in the UK. Neighbours have talked about the family having a Libyan flag flying in its house at certain times of the year.
BBC home editor Mark Easton said the raided area was known to have been home to a number of Islamist extremists in recent years; some with links to Syria and Libya; some alive and some dead. BBC home editor Mark Easton said the area was known to have been home to a number of Islamist extremists in recent years; some with links to Syria and Libya; some alive and some dead.
A Muslim community worker has told BBC News that members of the public called the police anti-terrorism hotline warning about Abedi's extreme and violent views several years ago. Abedi's older brother Ismail, 23, is one of eight men in custody in the UK following the attack.
The community worker - who did not want to be identified - said two people who knew Abedi at college made separate calls to the police.
They had been worried that "he was supporting terrorism" and had expressed the view that "being a suicide bomber was OK".
The calls are thought to have been made five years ago, he added.
The BBC also understands that Abedi was in Manchester earlier this year, when he told people of the value of dying for a cause and made hardline statements about suicide operations and the conflict in Libya.
Greater Manchester Police said they would not comment on the claims.
Hamid El-Sayed, who worked for the UN on tackling radicalisation and who now works at the University of Manchester, said Abedi had a "really bad relationship" with his family.Hamid El-Sayed, who worked for the UN on tackling radicalisation and who now works at the University of Manchester, said Abedi had a "really bad relationship" with his family.
"Eventually he was doing very bad at his university, at his education, and he didn't complete, and they tried to take him back to Libya several times. He had difficulties adjusting to European lifestyle," he said."Eventually he was doing very bad at his university, at his education, and he didn't complete, and they tried to take him back to Libya several times. He had difficulties adjusting to European lifestyle," he said.
A former classmate of Abedi has told the BBC that "he was a very jokey lad" but was at the same time was "very short tempered", saying Abedi would lose his temper over "the littlest thing".
The man, who does not want to be identified, said he went to secondary school with Abedi at Burnage Academy for Boys in Manchester, formerly known as Burnage High School.
"What I realised was he had a short temper but apart from that was a very sound lad," the man said.
He said that Abedi was "away at random times throughout the year - but I don't know if that was because he was out the country, or just didn't show up to school, because he did hang around with the wrong crowd and was very, very gullible".
"You could tell him anything and he would pretty much fall for it," he added.
The former classmate said that, before leaving the school in 2011, Abedi became "more and more religious" and that this might explain why he cut ties with former classmates.
'The face of hate''The face of hate'
A trustee of the Manchester Islamic Centre, also known as the Didsbury Mosque, told the Press Association it was likely Abedi had attended there.A trustee of the Manchester Islamic Centre, also known as the Didsbury Mosque, told the Press Association it was likely Abedi had attended there.
Fawaz Haffar said Abedi's father used to perform the call for prayer at the mosque, and one of his brothers had been a volunteer there. Fawaz Haffar said while Abedi's father used to perform the call for prayer at the mosque, one of his brothers had also been a volunteer there.
Mr Haffar described the mosque as moderate, modern and liberal, and said he was a member of an organisation liaising with police.Mr Haffar described the mosque as moderate, modern and liberal, and said he was a member of an organisation liaising with police.
Mohammed Saeed El-Saeiti, the imam at the Didsbury Mosque, remembers Abedi as a dangerous extremist, the Daily Telegraph newspaper reports.Mohammed Saeed El-Saeiti, the imam at the Didsbury Mosque, remembers Abedi as a dangerous extremist, the Daily Telegraph newspaper reports.
"Salman showed me the face of hate after my speech on Isis [an acronym for the Islamic State group]," said the imam."Salman showed me the face of hate after my speech on Isis [an acronym for the Islamic State group]," said the imam.
"He used to show me the face of hate and I could tell this person does not like me. It's not a surprise to me.""He used to show me the face of hate and I could tell this person does not like me. It's not a surprise to me."
Chief Constable Ian Hopkins confirmed that it was clear that Abedi had been part of a network of collaborators and Home Secretary Amber Rudd said he had been known to security services. Chief Constable Ian Hopkins confirmed Abedi had been part of a network of collaborators and Home Secretary Amber Rudd said he had been known to security services.
A Whitehall source said Abedi was one of a "pool" of former subjects of interest whose risk remained "subject to review" by the security service and its partners.
The Islamic State group issued a statement after the attack claiming it had been carried out by one of its members, but that has not been verified.The Islamic State group issued a statement after the attack claiming it had been carried out by one of its members, but that has not been verified.