Almost exactly one year before an ISIS-inspired suicide bomber detonated a homemade bomb that killed 22 people – including several children – and injured more than 119 others outside a concert venue in Manchester, U.K. two nights ago, Manchester police were publicly criticized for being insensitive toward Muslims while training to respond to these exact types of attacks.
The BBC reported in May of last year that Manchester authorities had staged a mock terrorist attack to teach law enforcement how to respond in the event of a bombing like the one that actually occurred Monday night. In the training course, police responded to a fake attack by a “Muslim terrorist” who shouted “Allahu Akbar” (a common Islamic war cry that translates to “God is great”) before setting off a bomb.
The “terrorist” in the drill reportedly shouted the phrase before walking into a Chinese restaurant and detonating a simulated explosion.
But Muslim sympathizers took issue with police using a Muslim attacker in their drill, saying it was insensitive to Muslims who are often “stereotyped” as terrorists.
“Manchester peace activist Dr. Erinma Bell criticised the use of a ‘Muslim terrorist.’” BBC reported at the time. “She said ‘a terrorist can be anyone’ and ‘we need to move away from stereotypes.’”
After receiving backlash from Britain’s P.C. brigade, Manchester police walked back their training course and apologized for offending Muslims by using a fake Islamic terrorist in their drills.
"On reflection, we acknowledge that it was unacceptable to use this religious phrase immediately before the mock suicide bombing, which so vocally linked this exercise with Islam,” officials explained. “We recognise and apologise for the offence that this has caused."
Manchester police commissioner was also forced to apologize personally, saying that while “This planning event has helped ensure that should the unthinkable ever happen, Greater Manchester will be ready,” the entire drill was ultimately “marred by the ill-judged, unnecessary and unacceptable decision by organisers to have those playing the parts of terrorists to shout 'Allahu Akbar' before setting off their fake bombs.”
Unfortunately, it turned out that the unthinkable did happen in Manchester – and it was perpetrated by none other than an Islamic terrorist.
According to reports, Monday night's ruthless attack was carried out by 22-year-old Salman Abedi, a U.K.-born man of Libyan descent who was reportedly raised in a tight-knit immigrant community and worshipped at a local moque that's been accused of supporting jihadists. Abedi had apparently just returned from a trip to Libya three weeks before he set off a homemade bomb outside a Manchester concert arena, just as thousands of attendees were filing out of an Ariana Grande show.
So much for political correctness.
H/T: Brad Thor, Twitter