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Manchester Arena Bomber Targeted Teens
The device that exploded as concert-goers started exiting Europe’s largest indoor arena was a ‘nail bomb’ that sent metal shards ripping into the bodies of the music fans.
Witnesses say the ground near the epicenter of the blast was covered with nuts and bolts. Medics on the scene reported as the horror unfolded that they were treating wounds consistent with shrapnel injury.
Soft targets
Nightclubs, restaurants, bars, vacation beaches and concerts have all been targeted in recent years by Islamic militants in the West, either directed or inspired by the Islamic State terror group, say analysts.
The targeting is partly a matter of convenience, according to counter-terror officials. Like transports hubs, concerts and nightclubs are not always tightly secure and draw large crowds, thereby maximizing the chances for attackers to inflict heavy loss of life as the bomber did on Monday night — and as militants did in November 2015 when they struck a sold-out rock concert at the Bataclan theater in the French capital, Paris, killing more than a hundred.
But jihadist strategists and propagandists also take cruel delight in striking at pop concerts, say analysts. IS propagandists made a point of stressing that the Bataclan concert by the Eagles of Death Metal band had been “precisely chosen” as a target by three suicide bombers because of its immoral nature.
“The targets included the Bataclan theater for exhibitions, where hundreds of pagans gathered for a concert of prostitution and vice," read a statement released by the terror group after the Paris attack.
Manchester Arena on Monday night presented an “ideal target” for jihadists, says Olivier Guitta, managing director at GlobalStrat, a security and geopolitical risk consulting firm, as it combined music, which is abhorred by the militants, a “U.S. singer, children and teenagers.”
He notes that in the past year-and-half music venues and clubs have been targeted four times by jihadist attackers — “Bataclan, the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, and the Reina nightclub, Istanbul and now the Manchester Arena.”
And there could have been more if Western security services had not prevented other attacks. In February 2016 a group of IS followers were arrested in France for planning terror attacks on nightclubs.
Attack on 'Crusaders'
There has been no official claim of responsibility for the Manchester attack from any terror group, including the Islamic State group, but IS supporters were quick after the carnage to celebrate the bombing on social media sites, saying it was as a victory over “the crusaders” of the West.
There were celebrations also on IS channels on Telegram, a social messaging app, prompting Michael S. Smith, a counter-terrorism analyst, to argue that that is a “strong indicator” the attack may be linked to the terror group. IS normally claims responsibility for attacks through their semi-official news channels, often not immediately but normally within 24 hours.
Concert halls were among a long list of targets recommended for attack in the latest issue of the IS magazine Rumiyah.
This is the worst terrorist attack in Britain in more than a decade. In July 7, 2005, four suicide bombers killed 52 people when they struck the London public transport system. After that incident the British government introduced measures to restrict the purchase of materials that can be used to make homemade explosives.
Britain’s interior minister Amber Rudd noted the particular barbarity of the bombing, “deliberately targeting some of the most vulnerable in our society — young people and children out at a pop concert.” She added: “My thoughts and prayers go out to the families and victims who have been affected.”
Oliver Jones, 17, who attended with his 19-year-old sister, told the Guardian newspaper: “The bang echoed around the foyer of the arena and people started to run.”
And Erin McDougle, aged 20, from Newcastle, said: “There was a loud bang at the end of the concert. The lights were already on so we knew it wasn’t part of the show. At first we thought it was a bomb. There was a lot of smoke. People started running out. When we got outside the arena there were dozens of police vans and quite a few ambulances.”
Jamie Dettmer compiled this report for VOA News.
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FAFSA Delays Prompt California to Extend Deadline for Financial Aid Applications
The California Legislature on Thursday voted to give prospective college students more time to apply for two of the state's largest financial aid programs after a glitch in the federal government's application system threatened to block up to 100,000 people from getting help.
California had already extended the deadline for its financial aid programs from March 2 to April 2. On Thursday, the state Senate gave final approval to a bill that would extend it again until May 2. The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom.
"Clearly, our students need our help," Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes, a Democrat from Riverside who authored the bill, told lawmakers during a public hearing earlier this week.
California has multiple programs to help people pay for college. The biggest is the Cal Grant program, which gives money to people who meet certain income requirements. The state also has a Middle Class Scholarship for people with slightly higher incomes.
Students can apply for these state aid programs only if they first complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly known as FAFSA.
This year, a computer glitch prevented parents from filling out the form if they did not have a Social Security number. That meant many students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents but whose parents are not were blocked from completing the form and thus could not apply for California's aid programs.
California has a large population of adults who are living in the country without legal permission. The California Student Aid Commission, the state agency in charge of California's financial aid programs, estimates as many as 100,000 students could be affected by this glitch.
The U.S. Department of Education says it fixed the problem last week, but those families are now a step behind. Democrats in Congress raised alarms last month, noting that the delay could particularly hurt students in states where financial aid is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, including Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Oregon and Texas.
Advocates fear that the chaos of this year's process could deter students from going to college at all, especially those for whom finances are a key part of the decision.
The computer glitch is just one part of larger problems affecting FAFSA.
The notoriously time-consuming form was overhauled in 2020 through a bipartisan bill in Congress. It promised to simplify the form, going from 100 questions to fewer than 40, and it also changed the underlying formula for student aid, promising to expand it to more low-income students.
But the update has been marred by delays, leaving families across the country in limbo as they figure out how much college will cost.
The form is typically available to fill out in October, but the Education Department didn't have it ready until late December. Even then, the agency wasn't ready to begin processing the forms and sending them to states and colleges, which only started to happen this month.
The problems appear to have already reduced California's application numbers. Through March 8, the number of California students who had completed FAFSA was 43% lower than it was at the same time last year.
"The data most concerning me seems to suggest that these drops are more acute at the schools that serve low-income students or large populations of students of color," Jake Brymner, deputy chief of policy and public affairs for the California Student Aid Commission, told lawmakers in a public hearing earlier this week.
The issue has caused problems for colleges and universities, too. The University of California and California State University systems both delayed their admissions deadlines because so many prospective students were having trouble with FAFSA.