Barcelona attack: Fourth suspect arrested

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Europe

- Barcelona attack: 14 killed and 130 others injured after van mowed down pedestrians in Las Ramblas; fourth suspects arrested

- Cambrils attack: Five terror suspects killed, six civilians and one police officer injured

- Citizens from over 30 countries among the dead and injured

Two deadly car rampages in Spain, separated by only a few hours on Thursday, spread panic in the country and triggered a sweeping anti-terror operation on Friday morning, as fears of terrorist attacks have been renewed across Europe, whose streets have seen civilians being intentionally mowed down by speeding vehicles in recent months. The brutal rampages were conducted by a van and a car, respectively.

Reuters Photo

14 people were killed and 130 others injured after a van ploughed into crowds in Barcelona's iconic Las Ramblas tourist area, in an attack that was claimed by ISIL.

Hours later, a group of suspects drove a car into people in the Spanish seaside resort of Cambrils, 110km southwest of Barcelona, injuring six civilians and one police officer.

Spain's civil protection agency said people from over 30 countries were among the killed and the injured.

A tourist from Hong Kong and two others from Taiwan were wounded in the attack in Barcelona, said China's Consulate General. The two from Taiwan are severely injured and the Hong Kong tourist with minor injury has been discharged from hospital, Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed.

26 French citizens were among the injured in the attack, with at least 11 of them in a serious condition, said the French Foreign Ministry.

Among the four suspects arrested, three are from Morocco and one from Spain, regional police chief said at a press conference. They were aged between 21 and 34 with no history of terror-related activities.

ISIL said its "soldiers" carried out the attack, but gave no evidence to back its claim.

"You could see all the bodies lying through Las Ramblas," a witness said as he described the scene in the wake of the attack.

Early Friday morning, police announced they killed five suspects during an operation in Cambrils and asked people to stay indoors.

Police said they were “working on the hypothesis that the terrorists shot dead in Cambrils could be linked to what happened in Barcelona.”

Catalan police said on Twitter that a bomb squad in Cambrils will carry out several controlled explosions after they determined that the attackers were carrying explosive belts.

The authorities also said an explosion on Wednesday evening at a house outside Barcelona, which killed one person, was in connection with Las Ramblas attack.

Residents of the house were preparing explosives, according to police.

Reuters Photo

PM calls for global response

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy branded the van attack in Barcelona as "jihadist terrorism" that required a global response.

"Today the fight against terrorism is the principal priority for free and open societies like ours. It is a global threat and the response has to be global," Rajoy told a news conference in Barcelona.

He also declared three days of national mourning over the attack.

A spokesman for UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he "condemns today's terrorist attack on Barcelona" and "hopes that those responsible for this heinous violence will be swiftly brought to justice."

Reactions from China

President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolence on Friday to Spanish King Felipe VI over the deadly terrorist attacks.

China strongly condemned the terror attacks in Barcelona, and will work with the international community to combat terrorism, according to Foreign Ministry spokesman Hua Chunying on Friday.

The Chinese Consulate-General in Barcelona sent officials to visit the two injured tourists from Taiwan, Hua said, adding the ministry will closely follow the developments of the incident and provide necessary aid to the injured Chinese citizens.

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