Manchester Arena attack: MI5 witness to give evidence anonymously

(BBC) A senior MI5 officer will be allowed to give evidence anonymously from behind a screen at the public inquiry into the Manchester Arena attack.

Families of the 22 people murdered in the 2017 bombing had argued against the move, feeling it would not deliver an “open and fair inquiry.”

But chairman Sir John Saunders has ruled there would be “a real and immediate risk to the officer’s life” if his identity was made public.

The officer will be known as Witness J.

The inquiry is examining the suicide bombing, its planning and aftermath, and the response from the emergency services and other agencies.

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