Two men were arrested Thursday morning at separate locations in Manchester as police continue to carry out raids following Monday’s suicide attack.
Eight people are now in custody in relation to the attack following raids across Manchester, Wigan, Nuneaton and Warwickshire. A woman was detained late Wednesday but was released without charge hours later.
An army bomb disposal unit was sent to a college in Trafford Thursday morning. Witnesses report the unit shouted “take cover” as they arrived.
Roads around the institution have been closed off as officers are “assessing the situation,” BBC reports. The force said it was too early to reveal whether the operation was linked to the bombing.
Police chief Ian Hopkins said police are searching for anyone who may have helped Salman Abedi build the suicide bomb. While Abedi carried out the attack by himself, it’s become evident to authorities that he belonged to a larger terror network.
“I think it’s very clear that this is a network that we are investigating,” Hopkins said at a press conference Wednesday. “And as I’ve said, it continues at a pace. There’s extensive investigations going on and activity taking place across Greater Manchester as we speak.”
Abedi flew from Turkey to the United Kingdom four days before the attack, the Financial Times reported Thursday. He had a layover in Düsseldorf, Germany where he has been spotted at least twice. Authorities are now investigating possible ties to radical Islamic groups in Germany.
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