A person is treated in Barcelona, Aug. 17, 2017, after a van crashed into a crowd of residents and tourists. (AP/Oriol Duran)
A van rammed into a crowd in a popular Barcelona district in what police say was a terror attack. At least 14 people are dead and 100 injured.
Police in Spain have confirmed there are fatalities after a white van slammed into pedestrians in Barcelona’s historic Las Ramblas district Thursday afternoon.
Catalan police tweeted that “there are mortal victims and injured from the crash” without specifying numbers. The Barcelona-based La Vanguardia newspaper is reporting at least one dead and 20 injured.
The El Pais newspaper and various local media reports said police were treating the crash as a terror attack.
In a photograph on public broadcaster RTVE, three people were lying on the ground in the street of the northern Spanish city, apparently being helped by police and others. Other videos showed five people down and recorded people screaming as they fled the scene.
Police cordoned off the broad, popular street, ordering stores and nearby Metro and train stations to close. They asked people to stay away from the area so as not to get in the way of emergency services. A helicopter hovered over the scene.
“Israel strongly condemns the terrorist attack in Barcelona. On behalf of the citizens of Israel, I send condolences to the families of those who were killed and wishes for a quick recovery to the injured. This evening we again saw that terror strikes everywhere; the civilized world must fight it together in order to defeat it,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon expressed his condolences and support to Spain’s Ambassador Juan Manuel Gonzalez De Linares.
“We send our condolences and wish a speedy recovery to those injured in this horrific attack in Barcelona. Terror is terror, and Israel stands by the side of the people of Spain as we pledge to fight all those who seek to harm the free world,” Danon stated.
“The United States condemns the terror attack in Barcelona, Spain, and will do whatever is necessary to help. Be tough & strong, we love you!” US President Donald Trump said on Twitter.
Las Ramblas, a street of stalls and shops that cuts through the center of Barcelona, is one of the city’s top tourist destinations. People walk down a wide, pedestrianized path in the center of the street, but cars can travel on either side. The attack occurred near two kosher restaurants.
Cars, trucks and vans have been the weapon of choice in multiple terror attacks in Europe over the past year.
By: AP and World Israel News Staff
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