Cops attacked at Manchester Airport ‘could be forced into hiding’ to protect themselves after intense backlash
THREE cops attacked at Manchester Airport could be forced into hiding to protect themselves, claims a police source.
Officers from Greater Manchester Police have received intense backlash after shocking clips showed a man have his head stamped on before being allegedly pepper sprayed.
Tensions over the Terminal 2 chaos last night mounted after a new video showed an armed cop being put in a chokehold and an officer being left with a broken nose.
The latest clip captured the cop attacks before suspected brutality was carried out on Fahir Muhammed Amas, 19, as he lay on the floor.
A police source told the Mail on Sunday officers might now need to go into hiding – despite what appears to be a full ‘blow-by-blow’ account of “violence on both sides”, being revealed.
The insider also alleged the male cop who kicked Fahir lost control over fears his firearms could be snatched.
They said: “You can’t have people attacking, choking a police officer, who has got a firearm on his side.
“If that had been a French or an Italian airport, the police officers would possibly have shot them dead.”
It comes after the vicious scenes led to two nights of protests while the city’s mayor called for calm and said it was “not a clear-cut situation”, warning against the issue being “hijacked” by extremists.
Fahir and his brother Amaad, 25, had travelled to the airport to meet their mum on Tuesday night, it is understood.
She had travelled from Pakistan via Doha on a Qatar Airways flight – where ‘words were exchanged’ between her and a male passenger while onboard.
The flight landed at 7.20pm, and the argument continued into the baggage hall of Terminal 2.
The male passenger then allegedly pushed his trolley into Fahir and Amaad’s mum, according to the Mail’s source.
Then at 8.22pm, the woman met her sons and told them about the incident on the flight.
A “violent altercation” is then said to have erupted at a Starbucks coffee shop at the terminal.
Around six minutes later at 8.28pm, a male officer and two female cops intercepted the family at the car park ticket machines.
Disturbing scenes then unfolded as Fahir can be seen in new footage resisting police after they approached him.
In the clip, Fahir then appears to land a blow to a female officer’s face, breaking her nose.
He goes on to knock down a second woman cop in sickening scenes.
Brother Amaad then looks to be throwing “full-blooded” punches at a male armed officer as he slumps back into a chair.
Fahir seemingly joins Amaad, punching the same bobby before grabbing him by the neck in a “chokehold”.
The teenager’s grip was only released when one of the female officers tasered him.
A source claimed the male officer suffered a suspected broken jaw.
GMP insisted at the time three of their officers were assaulted prior to what was seen in that viral clip.
The force is yet to release bodycam footage of the incident.
GMP is currently being investigated by police watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
The IOPC received two referrals – one for the use of force and the other regarding the same officer reportedly using his PAVA, which is similar to pepper spray.
Fears 'tensions could boil over' as new clip of Manchester airport incident emerges
FEARS are rising that tensions in Manchester could explode after new footage surfaced of the airport fight that saw a cop kick a young man in the head.
t comes as Andy Burnham, Manchester mayor, has insisted there are “two sides” to the “complicated” situation.
The original footage, filmed at Manchester airport on Tuesday last week, captured a policeman stamping on the head of 19-year-old Mohammed Fahir.
It quickly went viral and sparked outrage without any context of the moments leading up to the teen’s violent arrest.
On Saturday evening new video surfaced of a brutal assault on the three police officers captured in the first clip.
It showed a man punching one of the officers repeatedly as he slumps back into a chair, while another hits a female cop in the face until she falls to the ground.
While the new footage may have shed more light on what happened at the airport, unanswered questions about the incident remain.
At least 100 people swarmed outside Rochdale police station in protest on Thursday night after watching the footage online.
Roads and tram lines in the city centre were blocked as a result of the unrest.
Neil Emmott, leader of Rochdale borough council, told The Guardian: “Definitely at some points there was a concern that the tensions might boil over – there’s no hiding from that.”
They have since confirmed the cop in question is under criminal investigation.
Manchester cops confirmed on Wednesday that two men were arrested on suspicion of “assault, assault of emergency worker, affray, and obstructing police”.
They said on Saturday evening that they are “investigating and appealing for witnesses in relation to three incidents that occurred on the evening of Tuesday 23rd July 2024 in Manchester Airport Terminal 2”.
Fahir has a cyst on his brain with symptoms “worsening overnight”, his family lawyer revealed on Thursday.
TWO INVESTIGATIONS UNDERWAY
Following Saturday’s fresh clip, lawyer Akhmed Yakoob said: “I do not promote violence. I have been behind the de-escalation of the whole situation, I urged protesters at Rochdale police station to go home.
“I attended a protest in Manchester city centre where protesters were threatening to stop the trams from operating.
“I urged them not to do so and I calmed them down and they went home.
“I’ve been urging everyone not to attend the protest at Manchester Airport. We are not here to put the public life into difficulty.
“No, we want justice for the family and it will happen.”
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham previously told BBC Radio 4 the situation is “not clear cut” after outbursts followed the video online.
On Sunday he added: “It is an extremely difficult situation but at least this morning it has moved forward a degree because people now have a fuller picture.
“This is a situation that escalated very quickly, it’s a very violent situation with issues on both sides.
“They key now is that we allow the two investigations to complete their work.
“There is one investigation ongoing into a number of assaults and that is a police investigation for people who are on police bail.
“And there is a second investigation into police conduct.
“That’s why I asked other people not to rush to judgement because of the complexity of it and, simply, everyone who’s having their say, nobody has got all of the facts.
“Nobody is in possession of the complete picture.”