People attend a candlelit vigil to mourn the victims of Manchester terror attack at Albert Square in Manchester, Britain on May 23, 2017. On Monday night, a suicide terror attack took place at Manchester Arena at the end of a pop concert, killing at least 22 people, several of whom were children, while injuring 59 others. (Xinhua/Han Yan)
LONDON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- After a four-day truce, election campaigning in Britain resumed on Friday with a war of words over terrorism and defense.
With the snap general election looming on June 8, political parties are engaged in a race for votes to decide who will be at 10 Downing Street on June 9.
All parties cancelled electioneering after Monday's bombing of the Manchester Arena which left 22 people dead and 116 others injured.
Labor's main opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn faced heavy criticism after a keynote address he made in London, his first speech since the bombing.
As Corbyn spoke detectives continued to quiz eight men aged 16 to 38 arrested in swoops, mainly in the Manchester area, following Monday's attack. Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner Mark Rowley said police had got hold of a large part of the terror network suicide bomber Salman Abedi belonged too.
Corbyn said it is the responsibility of the government to minimize the chances of attacks and to ensure the police have the resources they need, that Britain's foreign policy reduces rather than increases the threat to the country.
"Too often government has got it wrong on all three counts and insecurity is growing as a result," he said.
Corbyn said many experts, including professionals in the intelligence and security services, have pointed to the connections between wars that the British government has supported or fought in other countries, such as Libya, and terrorism at home in Britain.
"An informed understanding of the causes of terrorism is an essential part of an effective response that will protect the security of our people. That fights rather than fuels terrorism.
"Protecting this country requires us to be both strong against terrorism and strong against the causes of terrorism. The blame is with the terrorists, but if we are to protect our people we must be honest about what threatens our security.
"We must be brave enough to admit the war on terror is simply not working. We need a smarter way to reduce the threat from countries that nurture terrorists and generate terrorism," said Corbyn.
His comments drew immediate criticism from the Conservatives with Britain's defense secretary Sir Michael Fallon, who accused Corbyn of very muddled and dangerous thinking while foreign secretary Boris Johnson described Corbyn's comments as "absolutely monstrous".
Johnson, who Friday met with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, added in his attack on the Labor leader that it was "absolutely extraordinary and inexplicable in this week of all weeks that there should be any attempt to justify or to legitimate the actions of terrorists in this way".