Manchester Arena Incident

I am now worried as I have 2 GD who have bought tickets to the Justin Bieber concert in Cardiff. I know that the normal pattern of things has to carry on, but..........

Very sad at the loss of so many innocent young people. Also feel sad that children and young people won't be able to enjoy the freedoms we did, and indeed our children too when they were younger. The people of Manchester showed the world what compassion is.

How awful. I've just watched a mother begging for news of her daughter. It's unimaginable isn't it. There are no words of comfort for those involved.

People have been posting photos of missing relatives on the sky news website. i hope some of them turn up somewhere unharmed

Blodwen I understand your worry my DGD1 (11) was given a ticket at Christmas for a concert at the O2 later this year. I hope my SiL won't prevent her going.

Life is a risk. Many more people die in travel accidents than in these awful attacks. We all have to try to keep things in proportion and perspective..which I know can be so hard to do. This might help.
uk.businessinsider.com/the-things-most-likely-to-kill-you-in-one-infographic-2015-2?r=US&IR=T

So sad for Manchester and all the people involved in last night's appalling event. My prayers are with with you all.

Heartbreaking. So many young families just out to enjoy themselves. My niece works in a Manchester hospital and was called in from annual leave at midnight. She said it was horrific and cried all the way home from her shift. So proud of her and all the NHS and emergency services. On the positive side, I am also very proud to be a Manc after reading about all the offers of help from ordinary people. These scumbags must not defeat us.

How do these people justify their medievil barbarism? They distort religious teachings and are convinced that they have a 'ticket to paradise' for killing the infidel, which presumably is all the rest of us. What terrible suffering for all those affected; we must be lucky all the time to escape these atrocities; the terrorist has to be'lucky' only once to cause such grief. Those who allowed the ranting of hate preachers for so long have a lot to answer for. They will NEVER defeat us, but what a price we pay in the meantime.

How can anyone celebrate the deaths of innocent children? It's beyond sickening.

This is not a racist comment.

I despair at the low key reaction of Muslim leaders to this atrocity. They are as much under attack as anyone else - it is their religion that is being perverted in this appalling way. Manchester is a colourful multi-racial community and the children of Muslim parents will have been at the gig on Monday night and at risk or killed or injured.

We have heard from Trump, TM and heaven knows who else, with just one, low-key comment from a British Muslim organisation - I had to search for it. And have any predominantly Muslim countries been sending their condolences? - they may have, but it is not being widely reported. I cannot find it.

I really do think that the key to solving this appalling problem is for the Muslim community, both nationally and internationally to be making a huge noise about this corruption of their faith - TV adverts, posters on buses and trains and outside mosques; loud voices daily condemning this corruption, and pointing the way for young people towards peaceful Islam.

I know that a lot goes on, but we want to hear it and see it.

There will be those who will flame me for this post; but please be clear, this is not intended to be anti-Muslim; it is simply an expressed sense of despair that such corrupt folk are not being more roundly and loudly condemned from the community in which they hide themselves. Peace loving Muslims in Britain must be in despair today and my heart goes out to them.

I know that am making an assumption here about the perpetrator; but the comments from police and online seem to be pointing clearly in this direction. Even if the perpetrator is a random loony, I still think these thoughts are relevant.

How very sad it all is.

It is anti Muslim, no need on a thread which is expressing sorrow for the dead , injured and bereaved

it is anti muslim,we dont expect any one else to apologise for rogue incidents that involve someone of their faith.We accept that these things happen because people have a grudge or because they are mentally ill .The same should apply to the muslim community.

THE Manchester suicide bombing has been condemned as “horrific” and “criminal” by the Muslim Council of Britain.

It is not their fault if it is not mediated by the press.

Varian.Many many including GN will not be personally affected by the dreadful events in Manchester.That is not to say we cannot grieve with and for them.
GN is for all grans and grandads Are you implying then we should 'close down' our comments for the day like we were in a campaign of sorts.How insensitive.I am too far away to offer personal help but my thoughts go out to the people of Manchester.They are not alone. It could happen to anyone of us.

It is NOT annie - I have expressed my concern for the Muslim community and for those Muslim children who could have been involved in this atrocity. Do you not feel that this community needs to be loud in its condemnation? I understand how hard that is for them - no-one likes to feel that there are such inhuman people in their midst, when their doctrine is one of peace; but there needs to be a two-pronged attack from within and without the community to fight this horror which effects us ALL.

Of course I share the sorrow for the dead and injured and their families - that is entirely clear. But we cannot just be sad; we need to think hard about how this is being dealt with, so that we can stop others finding themselves in this appalling situation.

I have no easy answers any more than anyone else does - I just feel angry at the corruption of a peaceful faith into this carnage and wonder why voices from that community are not louder. I had to search hard for these condemnations today and fund only one.

How can we get these faiths to work together with other faiths and people of none to get the right message across to disaffected and vulnerable young people?

My heart goes out to the people so sad and distressing. Those poor families who have lost loved ones it so devastating.
Wicked evil people that can do that especially as there are children as young as 10 have attended.

Yes Penstemmon - that was the one reference that I found. The press are indeed the mediators of what we hear, and we are right to be concerned about bias and selectivity.

It is not just about rogue elements - the perpetrators are justifying their actions with reference to Islam, and those who understand the true spirit of that religion must be sickened by this. For my part I would like their condemnation to be louder and more visible. That is a valid opinion. Are there ways in which we might facilitate that by contacting the media?

Luckygirl, may I suggest you start a thread questioning why Muslims are not apologising for something they have not done .

Rosina. Who then in your book classifies as 'these' people.
Any human being who can take the lives of others, especially the young who have the world in front of them, is one of 'these' people.Regardless of colour or religion.
They are simply the runts of society, deluded, mentally impaired and with grudges. The drop outs. Easily picked out for indoctrination that for once in their sad lives makes them feel ten feet tall and believing they are important.

I think you are missing the point annie Muslims have not done it; but it looks as though someone using that faith as a justification has done it. That concerns me enormously, as it would if it were a Methodist or any other community whose doctrines were being twisted to such evil ends.

I am not asking peace-loving Muslims to "apologise" - I am asking that their condemnation should be very very visible and loud and in our faces so that corruptible young people who are sadly sucked in to this misery can hear it loud and clear. As I said - this needs tackling from within and without the community.

It involves non-Muslim communities too in reaching out to this beleagured community whose beliefs are being corrupted in such an evil way. In reassuring them that, yes we do want to hear their voice loud and clear and that they would have our support in this; both as individuals and as the media.

You are very brave Luckygirl and as soon as I read it I knew you would be castigated. Luckygirl did not ask the Muslim community to apologise but merely to condemn the actions of those Muslims who carry out these atrocities. There are many demonstrations in this country against racism, rightly so, but I have never seen a demonstration by the Muslim community against the 'perversion', as Luckygirl calls it, of the Muslim religion.

Going to put on my tin helmet to ward off the flak.

My thoughts and prayers are with all of the poor families affected today - it is beyond sad

My DD and GDD were there at a concert last week. It doesn't bear thinking about. My heart goes out to all those parents still waiting for news

Such a terrible incident and so many innocent young people enjoying what should have been a family night out together my heart goes out to all the families concerned.
What I have found shocking this morning is that there is a two car Police presence at the building that is used as the Local Mosque not too far away from where we live it really brings home the reality of what has happened and what could happen if people turn against the Local Muslim Community some who have lived locally for years and been well thought of neighbours and shop owners.

chrissyh - there have been numerous demonstrations by members of the Muslim community against acts what you call the perversion of their faith. Many have been featured in the media.
Manchester is a diverse city with inhabitants from all creeds, colours and faith who largely live easily side by side. The perpetrators of these disgusting incidents of mass murder want to disrupt communities and cause further separation between us,
The attacks in Egypt and Tunisia effectively put an end to the tourist trade in those countries. No doubt making it easier to recruit desperate young people with little hope of making a living now.
We must stand together and avoid expecting our ordinary Muslim neighbours to apologise for the behaviour of psychopaths in their midst.