It was an explosive situation that called for calm. Central to that were a few seconds of video footage.
In scenes that have now been viewed millions of times, an armed police officer appears to kick someone in the head in a car park at Terminal 2 at Manchester Airport.
What made the officer act the way he did? And what did that say about our city—and our society?
READ MORE: The Manchester Airport footage: the unanswered questions
These big, troubling questions hung over the images from the start. And they needed to be answered quickly.
On Saturday we decided to publish a 39-second video that fills in the gaps of a dramatic incident that at times threatened to escalate into serious unrest.
This new video, obtained exclusively by the MEN, shows some of the events in the crucial seconds leading up to the scenes that have caused so much concern and anger.
What the new footage appears to show is an outbreak of violence between two men, a male police officer and two female officers, during an arrest at the airport.
The footage shows both men hitting each other several times. A female officer is knocked to the ground after being hit in the face.
Like everything surrounding this incident, these images required careful handling. But it was our duty to ensure they got out. And here, in today’s newsletter, we explain why.
Recent days have seen events that affect everyone who cherishes unity and harmony in our city. In the city centre, protesters blocked tram lines and roads outside the offices of Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham after video of the alleged stamping went viral.
In Rochdale, where the man who was kicked in the video lives, hundreds of people gathered outside a police station.
As tensions ran high, outside agitators attempted to exploit the fallout on social media.
In the midst of it all, one thing was missing. The whole story of what happened. And our reporters have been trying to piece it together from the beginning.
“One of the big questions was what happened before that,” explains MEN editor-in-chief Amanda Crook, referring to the alleged kick seen in the first video.
“We are more aware than anyone that fragments of footage can be misleading by omission.
“A lot of people had a certain impression after seeing the first images,” Amanda explained. “It wasn’t about correcting that, it was about being able to paint the most complete picture possible.”
As tensions rose last week, conversations with Greater Manchester Police gave us the signal that there could be more going on.
Andy Burnham, who oversees GMP, said crucially that what happened at the airport was not a ‘clear cut situation’ as he had seen all the footage of the incident.
Last Tuesday, we were the first publication to publish the first 30-second video clip of the incident (all that was available at the time).
Then, on Thursday, we became aware of the existence of CCTV, which gave us a more complete picture. The next day, we were able to understand in detail what this other clip showed, and we were given a description, confirmed by a trusted source.
Then on Saturday we got this crucial new footage exclusively. Together with the newsdesk, MEN journalists John Scheerhout and Ashlie Blakey worked to successfully verify it.
“Our priority was not to impede any legal proceedings that had already begun or that might take place,” Amanda said. “(But) especially given the fallout from the initial footage, it was very important that we tried to show as much as possible.”
Our team sat down with legal advisors to determine whether and how to publish it.
“We decided to go ahead because we felt that what it showed was too important to ignore and it was being shared so widely,” Amanda said. “We felt that the images we initially shared were a very incomplete picture.
“We were aware that this wasn’t going to go away. People were still very angry and worried.”
A key consideration was protecting the identities of the individuals in the images, some of whom are believed to have been victims of threats. As a result, we decided to blur their faces.
“We took the responsibility for this very seriously,” Amanda explained. “We had a lot of discussions about what was the right thing to do with this.
“It was always our intention to publish as long as we could do so safely. While we feel this is a very important element, we still don’t have the full picture. We don’t have the audio and we know from the police that there were two other incidents that they called upon.”
“We’re also very proud that members of our community came to us with this material,” Amanda adds. “We believe we were able to obtain the footage because we handled the initial video responsibly and because we generally have a reputation for responsible publishing.
“It shows that they trust us in this and we think that’s because we’ve tried to handle it carefully.
“Our reporters and photographers have been incredibly professional throughout this process. It’s not easy covering divisions in your own community, but as always they’ve been brilliant and we’re really proud of them.”
When the images were published on Saturday night, every national newspaper and broadcaster in the country followed us in showing them. Our role in publishing them was part of our duty to keep our readers informed by providing fair and balanced reporting and working to ensure peace in our community.
The work of a journalist can raise complex ethical questions that must be balanced against your right to know as a member of a free and democratic society.
We couldn’t hide the first video. And the second one, too. The issues at stake are far too important.
While the emergence of the second video has given a clearer picture of what happened last week, questions remain about the actions of the officer involved. The Independent Office for Police Conduct has said the officer is being investigated for assault, but has stressed that this does not necessarily mean criminal charges will follow.
What the emergence of the new footage does underscore is the need to establish the full picture before jumping to conclusions. That sentiment was echoed by Andy Burnham, who said lessons could be learned from “rushing to judge” what is seen in a clip shared on social media.
The tension was palpable within GMP itself. The MEN has learned that in the days following the publication of the first images, armed police officers at the airport were furious about the treatment of their suspended colleague and openly discussed handing in their weapons as part of a protest, before being persuaded not to by managers.
Over the weekend, GMP also issued an appeal for information about three incidents that allegedly preceded the man being kicked in the head. Meanwhile, Akhmed Yakoob, the Birmingham solicitor representing the family involved in the incident, has announced that he is ‘stepping aside’.
This was one of those weeks that will lead to soul-searching in the city — and beyond. The images may have been new, but the flaws they exposed — about fairness, reasonable force, and whether communities feel they can trust officers to police them fairly and without bias — are not.