Manchester United has spoken out to condemn fans for “offensive” chants about the Hillsborough disaster at Anfield.
The two North West rivals faced each other in a Premier League clash at Liverpool’s home ground Anfield on Tuesday evening, and while many headlines were initially grabbed by the emotional seventh-minute tribute by both sets of fans for Cristiano Ronaldo’s newborn son, who tragically passed away, the Manchester club has now had to release a statement addressing supporters’ actions later in the game.
During the match, some Manchester United fans said to have been observed chanting songs aimed at the Hillsborough tragedy, to which the club has deemed “completely unacceptable”.
A statement released by the club addressing the situation reads: “Manchester United stands in solidarity with Liverpool and its fans in remembering the victims of the Hillsborough disaster [and] offensive chants about the tragedy are completely unacceptable.
“We will work with our supporters’ groups to educate fans on the issue.”
97 Liverpool fans tragically lost their lives on 15 April 1989 during a crush at Hillsborough Stadium / Credit: Liverpool FC
The statement released by Manchester United followed what was the 33rd anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster – which saw 97 Liverpool fans lose their lives on 15 April 1989 as a result of a crush on the Leppings Lane terrace during an FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest, at the Sheffield stadium.
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The Hillsborough disaster is known as one of the worst sporting disasters in UK history, and an inquest later ruled that the supporters were unlawfully killed.
Manchester United’s condemning of offensive chants aimed at the Hillsborough disaster come after cross-city rivals Manchester City also had to issue an apology last Saturday after a small section of its fans disturbed a minute’s silence marking the 33rd anniversary of the tragic event during their FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool at Wembley.
“Manchester City are extremely disappointed with the actions of some City supporters during the minute’s silence before today’s game,” a statement by the club read.
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“The club sincerely apologises to all those connected with Liverpool Football Club.”
We stand with @LFC in remembering the 97 victims of the Hillsborough disaster, 33 years on from that fateful day.
Sending our thoughts and sympathy to the @LFC football family and all those affected on the anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster 💙 https://t.co/N0cGeriW2s
Apologies made by both Manchester clubs also come after Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham, and Liverpool City Mayor Steve Rotheram, wrote a letter to MPs last week urging them to back the proposed ‘Hillsborough Law’ on the eve of the disaster’s anniversary.
The pair first joined forces at the start of 2022 to back the law that calls for a “fundamental reform” and seeks to support the families of the 97 Liverpool fans who lost their lives, but last week renewed their calls for fairer treatment for those bereaved, and called for changes to the justice system to prevent others going through the same “unnecessary trauma” endured by Hillsborough families.
Police warn criminals ‘don’t bother’ attending Parklife after already making arrest
Daisy Jackson
Greater Manchester Police have said that criminals shouldn’t ‘bother’ coming to Parklife festival this weekend, after already making an arrest at the festival site.
Officers have been carrying out searches of people arriving on site this week – and have already arrested a 24-year-old man.
A quantity of pills and a knife were both recovered from the man, who has been arrested on suspicion of possession of Class A drugs and possession of a bladed article.
After the arrest, Superintendent Phil Spurgeon issued a statement to criminals, saying ‘don’t bother coming to Parklife’.
He said: “We have a really robust police and partnership community safety operation for the festival, and the arrest and seizure yesterday demonstrates the vigilance of security staff, our thorough search procedures and our commitment to keeping people safe.
Parklife Festival, and (right) the suspected Class A drugs seized this week by police. Credit: GMP
“Make no mistake, illegal items such as weapons and drugs can have fatal consequences. Our top priority this weekend is keeping people safe, and anyone caught trying to take such items into the festival will be robustly dealt with.
“I hope the genuine festival-goers are excited for the fantastic weekend ahead and I am confident the majority will enjoy the event responsibly and safely.”
Greater Manchester Police and Parklife security staff will be working closely together to intercept anyone travelling to the festival with criminal intentions.
The arrest on 8 June was thanks to the festival’s drug detection dogs.
University of Manchester hit by cyber attack with ‘data likely copied’ by unauthorised party
Emily Sergeant
The University of Manchester (UoM) has confirmed that it has today become “the victim of a cyber incident”.
In a formal statement addressing the situation, the city‘s flagship further education institution says some of its systems have been accessed by an “unauthorised party” and that data has “likely been copied” as a result of this.
The University’s in-house experts are said to be “working around the clock” to resolve the issue.
External support teams are also said to be working in collaboration with the University to understand what data has been accessed.
Patrick Hackett – Registrar, Secretary, and Chief Operating Officer at the University of Manchester – explained in a statement issued this morning: “Regrettably, I have to share with you the news that the University is the victim of a cyber incident, [as] it has been confirmed that some of our systems have been accessed by an unauthorised party and data have likely been copied.
“Our in-house experts and established expert external support are working around the clock to resolve this incident, and we are working to understand what data has been accessed”.
— The University of Manchester (@OfficialUoM) June 9, 2023
Mr Hackett said he understands the nature of the issue will “cause concern to members of our community”, and says the University is “very sorry for this”.
The University says it is also working with relevant authorities – including the Information Commissioner’s Office, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the National Crime Agency, and other regulatory bodies – to resolve the issue, and will provide information to those affected as soon as they are able to.
Students and staff are also be told to be vigilant to any suspicious phishing emails within the coming days – with the University’s IT Services team having published some relevant advice to refer to.
Emily Sergeant -
21st April 2022 
