US takes full responsibility for Manchester leaks: Tillerson

Washington takes full responsibility for leaks regarding the British police investigation into the Manchester concert bombing, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Friday as he met British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson here.

Tillerson and Johnson met just days after images taken at the Manchester Arena during a police investigation, showing fragments of the bomb used in the attack, were published in the The New York Times.

"We take full responsibility for that and we obviously regret that that happened," Tillerson said, responding to a question at a joint press conference.

Tillerson went on to say that US President Donald Trump also condemned the leak, had called for an immediate investigation into the incident and would aim to prosecute those responsible, Efe news reported.

The leak was met with ire from officials in Britain and prompted the Greater Manchester Police to temporarily suspend information-sharing with Washington.

"This special relationship that exists between our two countries will certainly withstand this particular unfortunate event," Tillerson said, downplaying the effects of the leak on UK-US intelligence cooperation.

Johnson and Tillerson signed the book of condolences for the victims of the Manchester Arena attack.

On Monday, Salman Abedi, a 22-year-old British man born to a Libyan family, walked into the lobby of the Manchester Arena and detonated a homemade bomb when singer Ariana Grande's concert was coming to a close. Twenty-two persons were killed in the bombing.

--IANS

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