Families affected by the Manchester Arena bombing have said the UK's domestic intelligence agency, MI5, must be included in a new law to prevent cover-ups after security services adopted a “false narrative” during an official inquiry.
The attack in 2017 killed 22 people and injured hundreds. In a letter sent to Prime Minister Keir Starmer seen by the BBC, the families questioned how many times MI5 would show “it cannot be trusted” before it is forced to become more open to scrutiny.
"MI5 failed our loved ones and failed us,” they said. "It did so by failing to prevent the arena bombing. But it then failed and hurt us further through its lack of candour after the attack.”
The inquiry into the bombing found MI5 had not given an “accurate picture” of the intelligence it held on suicide bomber Salman Abedi, who detonated a rucksack bomb at an Ariana Grande concert. He and his brother Hashem used a step-by step video guide to build a shrapnel-packed explosive.
Abedi died in the attack, while his brother was jailed for life for assisting with the terrorist plot with a record 55-year minimum term in August 2020. The inquiry found their attack could have been stopped if MI5 acted on key intelligence in the months before the blast.
In 2024, more than 250 survivors filed a lawsuit against MI5 over its failings.
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