More than 250 survivors of the Manchester Arena bomb attack are taking legal action against MI5, lawyers representing them have confirmed.
Twenty-two people died and hundreds were injured after Salman Abedi detonated a bomb in the venue at the end of an Ariana Grande concert in May 2017.
He had packed the device with metal nuts and bolts that left many survivors with serious injuries.
Hudgell Solicitors, Slater & Gordon and Broudie Jackson Canter are the three lead firms representing the victims and have filed a group claim to The Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT).
The IPT is an independent judicial body that provides the right of redress to anyone who believes they have been the victim of unlawful action by a public authority using covert investigative techniques.
It is also tasked with considering complaints regarding conduct by, or on behalf of, UK intelligence services.
In a joint statement, the firms confirmed they had submitted a claim to the IPT but added that “as it is an ongoing legal matter, we are unable to provide any further details, or comment further, at this stage”.
MI5 has said it will not comment on ongoing legal proceedings.
In March 2023, after a public inquiry concluded MI5 had missed a significant chance to take action which may have stopped the bombing, the agency’s director general Ken McCallum said he was “profoundly sorry” that the security service did not prevent the attack.
Mr McCallum said at the time: “Gathering covert intelligence is difficult but had we managed to seize the slim chance we had, those impacted might not have experienced such appalling loss and trauma.”
Sir John Saunders, chairman of the inquiry, said the intelligence could have led to suicide bomber Abedi being followed to a car where he stored his explosives.