Manchester bombing: Suspect had terrorism training abroad - Sources

The man believed to have killed 22 people and injured 59 others in a suicide-bomb attack in Manchester Arena on Monday night, had ties to al Qaeda and had received terrorist training abroad, a U.S. intelligence official said on Tuesday.
 
22-year-old British born Salman Abedi, is the man believed to be the man behind the atrocity.

The U.S. intelligence official, who spoke to NBC News and has direct knowledge of the investigation, said Abedi, whose family is of Libyan descent, was identified by a bank card found in his pocket at the scene of the explosion after an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena. The identification was confirmed by facial recognition technology, the official said.

According to reports, Abedi had traveled to Libya within the last 12 months, one of  several countries he had visited, said the official. While he had "clear ties to al Qaeda," the official said, Abedi could have had connections to other groups.

 

Abedi, however, was known to British police and intelligence services, government sources told NBC News.

According to the intelligence official,members of his own family had reported him in the past, telling British authorities that he was dangerous. 

 

The official also said that the bomb used by Abedi was "big and sophisticated," and made with materials hard to obtain in Britain — meaning "it's almost impossible to see he didn't have help."

According to the official, investigators were concerned that Abedi could have been part of a terrorist cell, the extent and allegiances of which remain unclear adding that a "follow-on" attack is possible.
On Tuesday, police said Abedi was responsible for the deadliest terrorist attack in the United Kingdom since four suicide bombers killed 52 London commuters on three subway trains and a bus in July 2005.

ISIS claimed credit for the deadly attack.