Terror strikes the heart of Barcelona
Van ploughs into crowd, killing at least 13 people and injuring more than 100 Britons tell of vehicle jumping on to the pavement and hitting pedestrians in its way Islamic State claims responsibility for the attack as death toll expected to rise
TERROR returned to the streets of Europe last night when a van ploughed into a crowd of people in Barcelona, killing at least 13 and injuring more than 100 others.
Footage of the scene showed dozens of bodies sprawled across the pavement in Las Ramblas, a street popular with tourists. Two men, one Spanish and one Moroccan, were arrested but police said the driver of the van was still at large.
Last night in the town of Cambrils, 70 miles away, police said they were dealing with a “possible terrorist attack”. There were unconfirmed reports that three people had been killed in a shootout. Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) claimed responsibility for the Barcelona attack as Joaquim Forn, Catalonia’s police chief, warned: “Unfortunately the number of fatalities will likely rise.”
Last night it was confirmed that a three-year-old child was among the victims and 15 people people were in a critical condition.
Liam Searle, 22, from Chichester, West Sussex, said he was skateboarding along the road at around 5.15pm with his headphones on when he heard “massive bangs and thuds” which he thought were gunshots.
“I realised it was the van next to me hitting people.” he said. “The van had stopped right next to me. That’s when two men got out and I ran for my life.”
Driss Oukabir, a 28-year-old of Moroccan origin, was suspected of having rented the van used in the assault. Spanish reports later said he had handed himself in to police, who were investigating whether his brother had stolen his documentation.
Two explosions at a house in the town of Alcanar, 120 miles south of Barcelona, on Wednesday night were last night linked by police to the attack. Officers said the residents had been preparing explosives. At least one person died and more than 16 were injured in what was initially thought to be a gas explosion.
Theresa May, the Prime Minister, condemned the “terrible” Las Ramblas assault and said Britain stood firmly with Spain against terrorism. Donald Trump, the US president, tweeted that the US “will do whatever is necessary to help”, adding: “Be tough & strong, we love you!.” The Spanish royal family described the attackers as “assassins, criminals who won’t terrorise us”, while Mariano Rajoy, the Spanish prime minister, said the attack was “jihadist terrorism” requiring a global response.
In the aftermath of the attack, metro and train stations were closed amid reports that the attackers had entrenched themselves in a nearby Turkish restaurant. This was dismissed as false by Spanish police, who advised tourists to stay in hotels. British tourist Steve Garrett was at a nearby market.
“A large number of people ran into the market, lots of screaming, lots of shouting,” he said. “We ran into a bakery with four or five others and ran straight upstairs. An enormous wave of people went through the market.”
A man was shot dead after running over two police officers at a checkpoint on the outskirts of the city later in the evening. Police said last night it did not appear that the incident was linked to the van attack.
This was the eighth terror attack using a vehicle in Europe in the past three years, following the Nice assault in July 2016 that killed 86 and attacks on Westminster Bridge and London Bridge earlier this year that left four and eight people dead. Spain has not been hit by a serious terrorist incident since 2004, when Islamist militants placed bombs on commuter trains in Madrid, killing 191 people and wounding more than 1,800. But the country’s reputation as a tourist hotspot has raised the terror risk.
Earlier this year, jihadists warned that they would be seeking to take their campaign of death and destruction to popular areas in the Mediterranean.
The CIA warned Spanish police two months ago that Las Ramblas was a potential target, reports said.
“The CIA had already warned the Mossos d’esquadra [police] that Barcelona might be a terrorist target … They even put the focus on the Ramblas,” El Periodico stated.
TOURISTS dived for cover, thinking they were being shot at. But the terrifying bangs they heard turned out to be the sickening sound of bodies being struck by a van hurtling down Las Ramblas.
On Barcelona’s busiest street, one of the most famous thoroughfares in Europe, terrorists had struck.
At just after 5.15pm local time, the two-ton white van had mounted the kerb at the northern end of Las Ramblas, and ploughed down its 40ft-wide pedestrianised centre. Two hours later, according to local reports, a second vehicle smashed through a police cordon injuring two officers. The driver of that car was shot dead.
Las Ramblas, lined with bars and shops, was crowded with families on a typically hot, sunny afternoon when the terrorists first attacked.
Photographs and video footage taken in the aftermath show bodies strewn in the road, and prams and buggies upturned and abandoned.
“The van was right next to me just hitting people,” said Liam Searle, 22, from Chichester in Sussex. He had a remarkable escape. The van had driven right alongside him, he told The Daily Telegraph, before ploughing into a crowd and crashing to a halt.
“No one knew if it was a van, or a bomb or men with guns. Everyone was hiding behind things and no one had a clue what was going on. We just heard a load of bangs and then everyone ran.”
Mr Searle added: “I was skating in the road and had my headphones in when I heard massive bangs and thuds. I looked to my side and the van had stopped right next to me.”
It had zigzagged about a third of a mile down Las Ramblas before crashing into a crowd outside the Restaurant Maccabi, a kosher restaurant, before coming to a halt. The target is unlikely to have been a coincidence and suggested this was a well-planned attack.
On Las Ramblas, bystanders ran for their lives. Many stampeded into the famous La Boqueria food market.
A video on social media showed people lying injured on the pavement. Victims could be seen bleeding, some heavily, being tended to by passers-by. Brendon Sissing told how he saw the white van driving at “100kmh” (62mph) moments before it struck. “It knocked a whole bunch of people down and just kept on going,” he said. “[The driver] stopped and then carried on, people were on the floor and under the van.”
An eyewitness, giving his name as Isaac, said: “We saw the van running people over at 80kmh (50mph). It was as if it was driving through a corn field.”
Susan Maclean, a Briton on holiday with her husband, said: “All of a sudden, there was this screaming and hordes of people, fear etched in their faces, were running towards us, many yelling in Spanish. We had no idea what was going on. My first thought was this is a terrorist attack.”
Steve Garrett, a British tourist, told of the terror as they huddled in the food market, fearful gunmen were on the loose. He thought of the attack on Borough Market in London in June.
Mr Garrett said: “A large number of people ran into the market area. There was lots of screaming, lots of shouting. The security guards immediately responded. We ran into the bakery with four or five other people and ran straight upstairs whilst a wave of people went through the market.
“Obviously coming from England it reminded me a great deal of what happened in London, so we were very concerned about what might be going on. The lady that was with us said she heard gunshots.”
Later it emerged that the attack was linked to two huge explosions at a house in the town of Alcanar, 120 miles south of Barcelona, on Wednesday night, which killed one woman and left a man fight for his life.
Accounts from Las Ramblas differ but it is claimed the driver and possibly a passenger jumped from the vehicle and ran off. Gunshots were heard and there were claims, later denied officially, that the driver was holed up in a Turkish restaurant. Police last night said that two suspects had been arrested, but the driver was still at large.
A witness, who gave his name as Angel, said he saw the attacker. He described him as “a young man, 25 years
old, chestnut brown hair and skinny.” Mr Searle is adamant he saw two men flee the van after it crashed.
“That’s when two men got out so I ran for my life,” he recalled. He took shelter inside the Liceu Opera House and witnessed the carnage.
“The doors were made of glass so we could see everything,” he told The Daily
Telegraph, “I saw police officers and paramedics tending to a six or seven year old girl. She was screaming. To see the things with the kids and stuff, I don’t know what to say. It’s just shock.”
Manchester Arena terror attack survivor Chris Pawley, 30, said he was just yards from the attack. “I can’t believe it,” he said. “There was police everywhere and ambulances, the shops started putting the shutters down.”
A second van linked to the attack – possibly a getaway vehicle – was found in the town of Vic in Catalonia. Police cordoned off the area and were inspecting the vehicle. Documents pinpointing the identities of the terrorists were said to be inside. More than two hours later, around 7.30pm local time, a white Ford Focus smashed through a police cordon on the Diagonal, a major road through the city, injuring two officers.
The driver was later shot dead by police in Sant Just Desvern.