MANCHESTER – Supporters of Islamic State celebrated on social media a blast at a concert venue in the north of England killed at least 19 people, although the militant Islamist group has not formally claimed responsibility, according to the Telegraph.
At least 19 people were killed and more than 50 injured after an explosion ripped through an Ariana Grande concert in a crowded Manchester concert hall, leaving hundreds of people fleeing in terror.
According to the Greater Manchester Police, the incident is currently being treated as a ‘terrorist incident’.
Twitter accounts affiliated with Islamic State have used hashtags referring to the blast to post celebratory messages, with some users encouraging similar attacks elsewhere, the report on Telegraph added.
Some users called the attack an act of revenge in response to air strikes in Iraq and Syria.
“It seems that bombs of the British airforce over children of Mosul and Raqqa has just came back to #Manchester,” one user named Abdul Haqq said on Twitter, in reference to the Iraqi and Syrian cities held by the militants where a U.S.-led coalition, of which Britain is a member, is conducting air strikes.
“We hope that the perpetrator is one of the soldiers of the caliphate,” wrote one user on a channel affiliated to the group hosted by messaging network Telegram.
