MANCHESTER, ENGLAND—An apparent suicide bomber attacked an Ariana Grande concert as it ended Monday night, killing 22 people among a panicked crowd of young concertgoers, some still wearing the star’s trademark kitten ears and holding pink balloons as they fled.Teenage screams filled the arena just after the explosion, which also killed the attacker and injured at least 59.There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said police are treating the blast as an act of terrorism and that the attack was conducted by one man. “The attacker, I can confirm, died at the arena. We believe the attacker was carrying an improvised explosive device which he detonated causing this atrocity,” Hopkins said in a statement.The attack sparked a nightlong search for loved ones — parents for the children they had accompanied or agreed to pick up, and friends for each other after groups were scattered by the blast. Twitter and Facebook were filled with appeals for the missing.A police helicopter hummed over the city as sombre commuters hurried to work.Public transport shut down, and taxis offered to give stranded people free rides home, while residents opened their homes to provide lodging.The concert was attended by thousands of young music fans in northern England. Grande, who was not injured, tweeted hours later: “broken. from the bottom of my heart, i am so so sorry. i don’t have words.”Forensic investigations are trying to determine if the attacker had accomplices, Hopkins said. He provided no information about the person who set off the bomb.He said some of the dead were children but provided no further details.Hayley Lunt was staying at a hotel nearby and had taken her 10-year-old daughter Abigail to her first concert at Manchester Arena on Monday evening.She said the explosions rang out as soon as Grande left the stage. “It was almost like they waited for her to go.”“ ...
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