Manchester attack: Woman arrested over bombing as armed police raid flats in Blackley

Armed raid: A woman has been arrested in Blackley, Manchester
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Fiona Simpson24 May 2017
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A woman has been arrested in connection with the Manchester bombing after armed police swarmed a block of flats in the north of the city.

Residents heard a "huge bang" as officers carrying firearms raided an address in Blackley on Wednesday evening.

The woman is the sixth person arrested in the UK over the attack following raids in Fallowfields and Wigan following the blast at Manchester Arena on Monday.

Suicide bomber Salman Abedi blew himself up as crowds left an Ariana Grande gig, killing 22 people, including an eight-year-old girl, and injuring more than 100 others.

Police cordon: Armed police arrested a woman in Blackley
PA

His dad and brother have been detained by counter terrorism forces in Libya.

Greater Manchester Police said: "A search was carried out and a woman has been arrested in connection with the investigation into the Manchester Arena incident."

Alex Finnie, 54, said armed police and "men who looked like soldiers" were involved in the swoop, which he believed was on the 12th floor.

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He heard a noise which sounded like windows being blown out as police entered the flat.

He then saw a woman with dark hair and wearing a blue shirt with her hands cuffed behind her back and pressed up against a window.

He said: "When the bang went I heard screaming and shouting and then they took the woman out.

Manchester Arena explosion aftermath - In pictures

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"She was facing this way out the window and a couple of minutes later two armed police took her away.

"After the first one I heard loud banging on another door but on the same floor."

The woman was driven away in a police van, he said, adding that armed police were preventing residents from accessing the floor.

Resident Chris Barlow said there was a "huge bang" and "huge police presence".

"There was about 30 people on the street - they said there's been an explosion at the flats, a bomb or explosion," he added.

"There's CTU (counter terrorism unit) special forces - I spoke to one officer and they said they blew the door in and took a couple of people away."

A further five people have been arrested in the UK over the attack.

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