Donald Trump vows to hunt down leakers responsible for revealing Manchester terror details
DONALD Trump has vowed to hunt down intelligence officials responsible for leaking crucial information to American media about the Manchester bombing.
Trump has vowed to hunt down intelligence officials responsible for leaking details on Manchester
The US President said that he will prosecute anyone found responsible for releasing photos to The New York Times.
Salman Abedi killed 22 people and injured 119 more when he detonated a suicide bomb at the Manchester Arena as families left an Ariana Grande concert.
In the wake of the attack, details first began to appear in the US media as police tried to carry out their enquiries.
Mr Trump branded the US intelligence blunder “deeply disturbing” after crucial details were exposed in the midst of a crucial investigation by British authorities.
He said: “The leaks of sensitive information pose a grave treat to our national security…these leaks have been going on for a long time and my administration will get to the bottom of this.”
Members of the American media also leaked photos of the bomber, Salman Abedi’s identification, the type of weapon used and the number of casualties before police released the information.
Theresa May confronted Mr Trump in a heated exchange at the NATO summit in Brussels
Home Secretary Amber Rudd announced yesterday that Britain had temporarily halted sharing intelligence with America and the police would not share their findings with the superpower unti the leaks stopped.
Andy Burnham raged at those responsible, accusing them of “arrogance” in the face of Manchester’s suffering.
Speaking on Question Time, he said: “From the minute the attack happened, information was beginning to appear in US newspapers.
“It’s outrageous, I raised it with the US ambassador earlier in the week - I said ‘this can’t be right’.
Andy Burnham raged at those responsible, accusing them of “arrogance” at Manchester’s loss
“The lead investigator has to control the release of information – the British police – because otherwise you compromise the investigation.
“I said that and then it happened again.”
Theresa May confronted Mr Trump at the NATO summit in Brussels yesterday as the special relationship came under strain.
Mr Trump added: “No relationship we cherish more than the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom.”
After receiving assurances that the leaks would stop, the UK’s most senior counter-terror official said that the UK had resumed sharing intelligence.
The US president was said to be using the leaks as evidence that the intelligence community was out to sabotage his administration.
He was said to be preparing to use it in the FBI investigation into his links to Russia.