Manchester attack: Trump calls attacker a 'loser'
- Published
US President Donald Trump speaking in Bethlehem: "I won't call them monsters"
US President Donald Trump has called those behind the Manchester suicide bombing and other similar attacks "evil losers in life".
"I won't call them monsters because they would like that term. I will call them losers," he said in a speech during a visit to the Middle East.
World leaders have been sending messages of grief and solidarity to the UK city after the explosion at an Ariana Grande concert on Monday night.
Twenty-two people have been killed.
Police have named Salman Abedi as the suspected suicide bomber. The 22-year-old was Manchester born and from a family of Libyan origin, the BBC understands.
One of the most poignant reactions came from Polish President Andrzej Duda, who laid flowers at the British embassy in Warsaw as it emerged that a Polish couple were missing.
Angelika and Marcin Klis had gone to the Manchester Arena to pick up their daughter Alex and have not been seen since. She has appealed for help in finding them.
Polish President Andrzej Duda said his country was united in grief with the families affected by the attack
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe called on people to be vigilant.
"The most cowardly form of terrorism has struck once again, targeting - as in Paris more than a year ago - a concert venue," he said in a statement, referring to the attack at the Bataclan music venue in Paris in November 2015.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who also expressed condolences, plans to speak with UK Prime Minister Theresa May.
Macron: "I send my thoughts to the British people, the victims and their loved ones. Together we carry out this fight against terrorism."
Mayor of Nice Christian Estrosi, told French television that the attack had reopened wounds for victims of the 2016 truck attack in the southern French city, which was claimed by the so-called Islamic State group and killed more than 80 people.
He said the people of Nice relive the pain "every time some of our friends are hit".
Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paid tribute on Twitter
In an interview with France Info, Mr Estrosi assumed an Islamist motive, saying: "We must wage war against the fifth column which crawls like an octopus through underground networks."
In his remarks in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, Mr Trump also spoke of an "evil ideology [which] must be completely obliterated".
"Our society can have no tolerance for this continuation of bloodshed," he said during his his press conference with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was ready to increase security co-operation with the UK after "this cynical, inhuman crime", adding that he expected that those behind it would "not escape the punishment they deserve".
But Viktor Ozerov, who heads the defence committee of Russia's upper house of parliament, called the bombing a "lesson" to British intelligence for refusing to share information with their Russian counterparts.
Other reactions from around the world
India's PM Narendra Modi tweeted his condolences
China's President Xi Jinping has also telephoned Queen Elizabeth, offering condolences to those affected, saying: "At this time of great difficulty the UK and China stand together"
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has expressed "heartfelt sympathy and resolute solidarity with the people of the United Kingdom"
German Chancellor Angela Merkel: "This suspected terrorist attack will only strengthen our resolve to work with our British friends against those who plan and execute such inhuman acts. I assure the people in Britain: Germany stands by your side"
Donald Tusk, the European Council President, said late on Monday: "My heart is in Manchester this night. Our thoughts are with the victims"
Paolo Gentiloni, Italian PM: "Italy joins with the British people and Government. Our thoughts are with the victims of the #Manchester attack and their families"
Spain's PM Mariano Rajoy: "I condemn the attack. My condolences to the victims' families"
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan: "I firmly condemn the terrorist attack," adding that he shared "the pain of the British people"
African Union Commission Chairman Moussa Faki Mahamat: "Africa stands with the people and government of the United Kingdom in reaffirming our solidarity with them during this difficult time"
A Vatican telegram read: "His Holiness Pope Francis was deeply saddened to learn of the injury and tragic loss of life caused by the barbaric attack in Manchester, and he expresses his heartfelt solidarity with all those affected by this senseless act of violence"
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he hoped "that those responsible for this unjustifiable violence will be swiftly brought to justice"
Mr Trump's daughter, Ivanka, reacted to the attack with a message on Facebook