Dreaded terrorist group, ISIS has claimed responsibility for the deadly attack which occurred last night, killing 22 people, most of them children and their parents.
The terrorist group released a statement today in several languages through its central media body where they praised the attack and claimed more than 100 “crusaders” were killed or wounded at the “shameless” concert.
The statement went on to hail the suicide bomber as a “soldier of the caliphate” and threatened that what would come next would be more severe on the “worshipers of the Cross and their allies, by Allah’s permission.”
“With Allah’s grace and support, a soldier of the Khilafah [caliphate] managed to place explosive devices in the midst of the gatherings of the crusaders in the British city of Manchester,” the English version of the statement read.
Isis said the attack aimed to terrorize “infidels…in response to their transgressions against the lands of the Muslims”. The attacker was not named as a “martyr” as happens with other suicide bombers. This suggests that the attack may not have been a suicide attack, though police statements reveal that the perpetrator died at the scene.
The full statement from Isis read: “With Allah’s grace and support, a soldier of the Khilafah managed to place explosive devices in the midst of the gatherings of the Crusaders in the British city of Manchester, in revenge for Allah’s religion, in an endeavor to terrorize the mushrikin, and in response to their transgressions against the lands of the Muslims.
“The explosive devices were detonated in the shameless concert arena, resulting in 30 (sic) Crusaders being killed and 70 others wounded.
“And what comes next will be more severe on the worshipers of the Cross and their allies, by Allah’s permission.
“And all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the creation.”
“Kill them” and “#MondayMotivation” are some of the tweets posted by ISIS supporters encouraging more attacks and referring to last night’s attack as a motivation.
Scooter Braun, Ariana Grande’s longtime manager, posted a statement about the attack. He wrote:
“Tonight, our hearts are broken. Words cannot express our sorrow for the victims and families harmed in this senseless attack.”
As the tragic scene played out in real-time, Grande tweeted:
“broken. from the bottom of my heart, i am so so sorry. i don’t have words.”