25 May 2017•Update: 25 May 2017
By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON
The ongoing intelligence crisis between the U.K. and U.S. deepened on Thursday with reports Britain’s security agencies have stopped sharing some information with their American counterparts, according to the BBC.
Greater Manchester Police had been sharing findings with the U.K.’s national counter-terrorism unit before it was passed on to the U.S., Australia, Canada and New Zealand under an intelligence-sharing agreement called Five Eyes.
But according to a BBC report on Thursday morning, the flow of information from the U.K. to U.S came to a sudden end after intelligence on Monday’s Manchester bombing was leaked to American news outlets on more than one occasion and despite warnings from high-level U.K. officials.
British security figures on Wednesday slammed the U.S. intelligence services for allowing the leaking of details of the investigation into Manchester.
Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to raise the U.K.’s concerns with U.S. President Donald Trump during a NATO summit in Brussels on Thursday.
Leaks
U.S. journalists -- apparently acting on leaks from U.S. officials -- were able to publish fresh details of the probe into one of the worst terror attacks in the U.K. only hours after British Home Secretary Amber Rudd expressed frustration about the revelation of the main suspect’s identity.
The New York Times also published eight photographs of what appeared to be evidence taken by British forensic teams after a suicide bomber detonated a device in the foyer area of Manchester Arena.
Monday's blast killed at least 22 people. Eight suspects are currently in custody.
The newspaper described the photos as "law enforcement images" but did not explain how they were obtained. The leak, however, "undermines our investigations and the confidence of victims," the U.K.'s National Police Chiefs' Council said in a statement Wednesday.
"This damage is even greater when it involves unauthorized disclosure of potential evidence in the middle of a major counter-terrorism investigation," it said.
It said it valued its relationships with "trusted intelligence, law enforcement and security partners around the world", and this allowed "privileged and sensitive information" to be shared in the fight against terrorism.
"When that trust is breached it undermines these relationships, and undermines our investigations and the confidence of victims, witnesses and their families,” it added.
Bomber’s identity
On Tuesday, U.S. news outlets revealed the identity of Salman Abedi as the main suspect in the attack, despite British security services’ caution regarding the secrecy of the ongoing investigation.
British media reported Abedi’s identity only after it was shared by the Greater Manchester Police a few hours later.
Rudd described the leaks as irritating and said she had made it clear to the U.S. that it should not happen again. However, the New York Times photos came a few hours after her remarks.
Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said the leaks were “arrogant, wrong and disrespectful to Greater Manchester”. Burnham added he had previously complained to the acting U.S. consul about the leaks but, despite assurances they would stop, the information flow continued.
U.K. security sources underlined that the focus of their investigation is now on a terrorist network that could still have members that pose a high risk to the British public.
