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29 Mar 2024, Edition - 3181, Friday

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Spanish police kill suspects in second attack after 13 die in Barcelona

bbc.com

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Spanish police say they have shot dead five suspected terrorists in the town of Cambrils in a second vehicle attack, after an earlier one in Barcelona killed 13 people and injured dozens.

The men were linked to the Barcelona attack, police say.

Police are still hunting the man who drove his van into crowds on Las Ramblas in Barcelona on Thursday.

Spain’s PM Mariano Rajoy described it as a “jihadist attack”, which so-called Islamic State said it had carried out.

Mr Rajoy has announced three days of national mourning and a minute’s silence will be held later on Friday.

What happened in Cambrils?

Seven people, including a police officer, were wounded when a car was driven into them early on Friday, Catalan emergency services said. One person is in a critical condition.

The attackers’ vehicle overturned and when the men got out they were quickly fired upon by police, media say. One was reportedly brandishing a knife.

The men were wearing explosive belts, police said, and a series of controlled explosions was carried out. The belts proved to be fake, Catalan regional head, Carles Puigdemont, later told local radio.

Police say the situation in Cambrils – a popular seaside resort 110km (68 miles) south-west of Barcelona – is now under control.

What happened on Las Ramblas?

A rented van was driven down Las Ramblas, a popular street in the centre of the city on Thursday afternoon, mowing down tourists and locals.

Witnesses said the van deliberately targeted people, weaving from side to side.

The driver of the van, believed to be the sole attacker, fled on foot and is still being hunted by police.

Las Ramblas is a central boulevard that runs 1.2km (0.75 miles) through the centre of Barcelona from the city’s Plaça de Catalunya (Catalonia Square) to the Christopher Columbus monument at the seafront. It is popular with tourists because of its market stalls, bars and restaurants.

A businessman from New Orleans, who was just arriving in a taxi in Las Ramblas, said: “I heard a crowd screaming. It sounded like they were screaming for a movie star.

“I saw the van. It had already been busted on the front. It was weaving left and right, trying to hit people as fast as possible. There were people lying on the ground.”

Kevin Kwast, who is on holiday in Barcelona with his family, said: “I was eating with my family in La Boqueria market very near where the crash occurred.

“Hundreds of people started stampeding through the market… we started running with them going outside right into where casualties were already on the ground.

“Police pushed us into a money transfer shop and we’ve been sheltering there for over an hour.”

Who were the victims?

Citizens of some 24 countries were killed or injured in the Las Ramblas attack, the Catalan government has said.
One Belgian national has been confirmed dead.

France’s foreign ministry said on Friday that 26 French nationals were injured, with at least 11 in a serious condition.

A five-year-old Irish boy suffered a broken leg.

Hong Kong, Taiwan and Greece are among those saying their citizens were injured. German, Pakistani and Philippine nationals were also among the casualties, the Catalan government said.

Have arrests been made?

Two people were detained on Thursday over the Las Ramblas attack, but not the driver of the van.

One of those held is Driss Oubakir, whose documents were used to rent the van, local media say.

They say he is in his 20s, and was born in Morocco. However, latest reports suggest he has told police he was not involved, and that his documents were stolen.

Spanish media report that his younger brother, Moussa Oubakir, is being sought in connection with the Las Ramblas attack.

The second man arrested was born in Melilla, the autonomous Spanish city on the north coast of Africa. He has not been named.

On Friday, police announced a third arrest had been made in the Catalan town of Ripoll.

So-called Islamic State has said it was behind the Las Ramblas attack, saying in a brief statement carried by its Amaq news agency that it was carried out by “Islamic State soldiers”. The group gave no further evidence or details to back this claim.

What is the timeline of events?

Alcanar, Wednesday evening: An explosion rips through a house in the small town, 200km south of Barcelona. One person dies. Police chief Josep Lluis Trapero said it appeared the residents at the house had been “preparing an explosive device”. A Catalan government official says a cell may have intended to use gas canisters in the Las Ramblas attack

Barcelona, Thursday 16:50 (14:50 GMT): A white Fiat van drives down Las Ramblas in central Barcelona, killing 13 people and injuring scores. The driver flees on foot

Vic, Thursday 18:30: Police find a second van, thought to be a getaway vehicle, in the town, 80km north of Barcelona

Sant Just Desvern, Thursday 19:30: A car is driven into officers at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Barcelona. A man is found dead in the car but the interior ministry denies earlier reports he was killed by police gunfire.

The dead man is not believed to be linked to the Las Ramblas attack, officials say, but investigations are ongoing
Cambrils, Friday 01:00: Police stop a second vehicle attack in the resort south of Barcelona, killing five terrorist suspects said to be linked to the Las Ramblas attack

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