The murderous Abedi brothers were inspired by an ISIS-linked group of extremists as they prepared to attack a pop concert in the city where they were born. Hashem Abedi is believed to have created and used an email address - bedab7jeanagmail.com - that was inspired by the Arabic slogan “through slaughter we have come”. The email account was used to purchase chemical components for the bomb.
The slogan was chosen by the Syrian-based armed group Katibat Al Battar Al Libi when it formed in 2012 and was well-known among militants in North Africa. Handwritten scraps of paper bearing the email address were found in a bin at the Manchester home of the brothers following the attack on the Manchester Arena where 22 people were killed by a bomb detonated by Salman Abedi.
Katibat Al Battar Al Libi was an extremist group with a predominantly Libyan membership but also comprised of other North Africans and Europeans who headed to Syria in the wake of the Arab uprisings.
The email address hinted at the source of influence on the brothers but a limited amount of phone and communications data has been available to the investigators, meaning it was impossible to trace potential key figures in Libya behind their radicalisation. Both brothers are known to have travelled to Libya to join the uprising against Col Muammar Qaddafi. Decades earlier their father was a member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) that was proscribed by the British government as a terrorist group until last year.
“They spent a great deal of time in Libya,” said Detective Chief Superintendent Simon Barraclough, the senior officer in charge of the investigation. “Since before Qaddafi fell, there’s a great deal of radicalism out there and a great deal of support for ISIS ideology.
“It would not be unreasonable to make at least some assumption that they have contacts out there and had some people who influenced them in Libya.”
Police assess that Salman Abedi had shown some expertise in avoiding identification after he returned to Manchester to detonate the bomb: “Whoever has radicalised this man, or been instrumental in that instruction, has clearly imparted some trade craft as well,” Chief Supt Barraclough said.
Large groups of fighters from the eastern Libyan city of Derna, a place with a history of militancy, were among the first foreigners to arrive in Syria in 2012 to form Katibat Al Battar Al Libi, according to the Small Arms Survey, a specialist monitoring group. The group would eventually side with ISIS. Members were reportedly divided into three roles: guarding senior ISIS leaders, assassinating rivals, and mass casualty attacks.
Salman once met with figures from the brigade in the capital Tripoli, a city dominated by armed factions, and the migrant smuggling town of Sabratha to the west, where ISIS once had a presence, according to The New York Times which cited US security sources.
ISIS’s Libya branch in 2015 seized the central coastal city of Sirte, the former hometown of deceased leader Muammar Qaddafi, and controlled a swathe of territory second only in size to its footprint in Syria and Iraq.
Hundreds of Libyan members of Katibat Al Battar Al Libi - “an elite unit of shock troops and trainers” - returned home in late 2015 as ISIS began to claim territory during civil war in the oil-rich North African country, said terrorism researcher Kyle Orton.
The group also helped direct attacks abroad. Its alumni included some of Europe’s most infamous terrorists, including Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the Belgian who was reputed to be the ringleader in the 2015 attacks in Paris that killed 130 people.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
if you go
The flights
Emirates flies to Delhi with fares starting from around Dh760 return, while Etihad fares cost about Dh783 return. From Delhi, there are connecting flights to Lucknow.
Where to stay
It is advisable to stay in Lucknow and make a day trip to Kannauj. A stay at the Lebua Lucknow hotel, a traditional Lucknowi mansion, is recommended. Prices start from Dh300 per night (excluding taxes).
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
The Transfiguration
Director: Michael O’Shea
Starring: Eric Ruffin, Chloe Levine
Three stars
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Read more about the coronavirus
Zayed Sustainability Prize
More coverage from the Future Forum
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
German plea
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the German parliament that. Russia had erected a new wall across Europe.
"It's not a Berlin Wall -- it is a Wall in central Europe between freedom and bondage and this Wall is growing bigger with every bomb" dropped on Ukraine, Zelenskyy told MPs.
Mr Zelenskyy was applauded by MPs in the Bundestag as he addressed Chancellor Olaf Scholz directly.
"Dear Mr Scholz, tear down this Wall," he said, evoking US President Ronald Reagan's 1987 appeal to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tailors and retailers miss out on back-to-school rush
Tailors and retailers across the city said it was an ominous start to what is usually a busy season for sales.
With many parents opting to continue home learning for their children, the usual rush to buy school uniforms was muted this year.
“So far we have taken about 70 to 80 orders for items like shirts and trousers,” said Vikram Attrai, manager at Stallion Bespoke Tailors in Dubai.
“Last year in the same period we had about 200 orders and lots of demand.
“We custom fit uniform pieces and use materials such as cotton, wool and cashmere.
“Depending on size, a white shirt with logo is priced at about Dh100 to Dh150 and shorts, trousers, skirts and dresses cost between Dh150 to Dh250 a piece.”
A spokesman for Threads, a uniform shop based in Times Square Centre Dubai, said customer footfall had slowed down dramatically over the past few months.
“Now parents have the option to keep children doing online learning they don’t need uniforms so it has quietened down.”
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Tips for avoiding trouble online
- Do not post incorrect information and beware of fake news
- Do not publish or repost racist or hate speech, yours or anyone else’s
- Do not incite violence and be careful how to phrase what you want to say
- Do not defame anyone. Have a difference of opinion with someone? Don’t attack them on social media
- Do not forget your children and monitor their online activities
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
The years Ramadan fell in May
If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
