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| Barcelona and Cambrils attackers planned bigger atrocity, say police – live updates | Barcelona and Cambrils attackers planned bigger atrocity, say police – live updates |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 5.05pm BST | |
| 17:05 | |
| Ashifa Kassam | |
| A 26-year-old tourist from Australia who was caught up in Thursday’s Las Ramblas attack has said it was the third terrorist attack she has experienced since she began travelling Europe almost three months ago. | |
| Julia Monaco ended up in lockdown in the London tube in June after a speeding van hit pedestrians on the London Bridge and attackers stabbed people with knives in cafes and restaurants at Borough market. Days later, she was in Paris when French police shot a man who attacked an officer with a hammer outside of the Notre Dame cathedral. | |
| She continued her travels, ending up in a shop off Las Ramblas on Thursday as a van ploughed into the crowds outside. The shop’s doors were locked and panic spread as people began to suspect that something serious was taking place outside. | |
| “The next second, we were literally running for our lives to the very back of the store, where we were told to get on the ground away from the windows and lay as flat as possible,” Monaco told the Australian radio station 3AW. | |
| Along with about 10 others – including two screaming children – Monaco hid behind a clothing display for about 30 minutes, before being evacuated by police. She later made it safely back to where she was staying. | |
| Monaco said she was rattled by her third brush with terror, but adamant that she would continue her travels. “I don’t feel like I want to go home,” she said. “I feel like I want to stay here and not let them, whoever they might be, win.” | |
| 4.53pm BST | |
| 16:53 | |
| Police seek four men - reports | |
| Sam Jones | |
| The Barcelona-based newspaper La Vanguardia reported late on Friday afternoon that the police were hunting four suspects. It named them as 17-year-old Moussa Oukabir – the suspect thought to have driven the van along Las Ramblas – Mohamed Hychami, 24, Younes Abouyaaqoub, 22, and Said Aallaa, 18. All live in or close to the Catalonian town of Ripoll. Oukabir’s age has also been given elsewhere as 18. | |
| Updated | |
| at 5.05pm BST | |
| 4.31pm BST | 4.31pm BST |
| 16:31 | 16:31 |
| Carmen Fishwick | Carmen Fishwick |
| A British family who were metres away from the Las Ramblas van attack, have praised the quick reactions of the police and the kindness of strangers, which made them feel secure. | A British family who were metres away from the Las Ramblas van attack, have praised the quick reactions of the police and the kindness of strangers, which made them feel secure. |
| Jackie Rado, 51, and her daughter Kristin RadoBarr, 14, who were on a family holiday with Tony Barr, 46, and Alexander RadoBarr, 12, were shopping at the make-up shop Sephora 100 yards from La Rambla. The family were separated for three hours as the area was put on lockdown. | |
| ‘My son was waiting for us, that was hard for him’ – Jackie Rado, 51, London | ‘My son was waiting for us, that was hard for him’ – Jackie Rado, 51, London |
| We were just about to leave Sephora, on the corner of La Rambla, and get ice -cream at La Bocqueria, but we were distracted by something on sale. We were on the ground floor and suddenly people started to race downstairs, hysterical. We were scared and no one knew what was going on. | |
| We could hear sirens. We were right where it was happening. We were locked in the store for three and a half hours. I just kept trying not to think about it and stay calm. | We could hear sirens. We were right where it was happening. We were locked in the store for three and a half hours. I just kept trying not to think about it and stay calm. |
| I keep pushing away the thought of what might have happened if we hadn’t done an about-turn in the store. | I keep pushing away the thought of what might have happened if we hadn’t done an about-turn in the store. |
| ‘I was very relieved when they came home. At that point we felt the danger has passed’ – Tony Barr, 46 | |
| I was in the southwest of the area with my son, visiting football stores. As we were coming out of the metro on our way back to the hotel, people were telling us not to come to the area. There were a lot of street vendors at the top of the subway standing in a group and waving us away, telling us not to come up. | |
| People were panicking and rushing and screaming. They checked everyone’s ID at the hotel before entering and kept everyone updated. We were in lockdown. | |
| People are going out of their way to interact and smile to Muslim guests. At the toaster this morning, I discussed with a Muslim woman how hot we should put the toaster. It wasn’t forced, but I’m aware that we should all be thoughtful. | People are going out of their way to interact and smile to Muslim guests. At the toaster this morning, I discussed with a Muslim woman how hot we should put the toaster. It wasn’t forced, but I’m aware that we should all be thoughtful. |
| I wasn’t worried for our safety, but I was very upset and angry knowing how close they were to my family. They’d been closer to it than many people. I was upset about the intent of it. I was very relieved when they came home. | I wasn’t worried for our safety, but I was very upset and angry knowing how close they were to my family. They’d been closer to it than many people. I was upset about the intent of it. I was very relieved when they came home. |
| Updated | |
| at 4.43pm BST | |
| 4.25pm BST | 4.25pm BST |
| 16:25 | 16:25 |
| Jason Burke | Jason Burke |
| European security services have sometimes struggled to keep up with the reaction of militant networks when prepared attack plans go awry, whether through their own deliberate intervention or some kind of unexpected accident, such as the blast at Cambrils. | European security services have sometimes struggled to keep up with the reaction of militant networks when prepared attack plans go awry, whether through their own deliberate intervention or some kind of unexpected accident, such as the blast at Cambrils. |
| Bombs in Brussels in March last year which killed 35 people, including three attackers, came 48 hours after police raids targeting the network responsible. Several members escaped the dragnet and went on to launch an improvised operation. Rafaello Pantucci, an expert on Islamic militancy at Royal United Services Institute think-tank, said: | Bombs in Brussels in March last year which killed 35 people, including three attackers, came 48 hours after police raids targeting the network responsible. Several members escaped the dragnet and went on to launch an improvised operation. Rafaello Pantucci, an expert on Islamic militancy at Royal United Services Institute think-tank, said: |
| There’s always an anxiety after a disruption if it’s unclear whether [the authorities] have got the entire cell or network, and what the reaction of any missing members might be. | There’s always an anxiety after a disruption if it’s unclear whether [the authorities] have got the entire cell or network, and what the reaction of any missing members might be. |
| Some militants, such as the Barcelona attackers, respond by rushing to execute new plans. Others go to ground. Mohammed Sadiq Khan, who led the 7/7 attackers in London in 2005 suspected he had been identified as a potential threat by MI5 owing to his peripheral involvement with a network responsible for an earlier abortive operation. Khan kept a low-profile for several months, before emerging to lead his own attack. | |
| Though Spain had escaped an Islamist militant terrorist attack since 2004, the country has long been among those in Europe which are seen as facing an elevated threat. Its counter-terrorist services are broadly respected by counterparts across the continent and in the US. They routinely co-operate with North African services, particularly those of Morocco. | |
| Updated | |
| at 4.45pm BST | |
| 4.10pm BST | 4.10pm BST |
| 16:10 | 16:10 |
| Thursday’s horrific attack doesn’t just sadden me but feels like a personal assault. | Thursday’s horrific attack doesn’t just sadden me but feels like a personal assault. |
| Read Harry Eyres’ love letter to Barcelona and, more specifically, Las Ramblas. | Read Harry Eyres’ love letter to Barcelona and, more specifically, Las Ramblas. |
| 3.51pm BST | 3.51pm BST |
| 15:51 | 15:51 |
| The Queen has sent a message of condolence to the king and people of Spain. | The Queen has sent a message of condolence to the king and people of Spain. |
| It is deeply upsetting when innocent people are put at risk in this way when going about their daily lives. | It is deeply upsetting when innocent people are put at risk in this way when going about their daily lives. |
| Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have lost loved ones and the people who are recovering in hospital. Please convey our heartfelt sympathies to all who have been affected by these appalling incidents. | Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have lost loved ones and the people who are recovering in hospital. Please convey our heartfelt sympathies to all who have been affected by these appalling incidents. |
| 3.42pm BST | 3.42pm BST |
| 15:42 | 15:42 |
| Julian Borger | Julian Borger |
| Lorenzo Vidino, the director of the Program on Extremism at George Washington University and an expert on radicalisation and jihadist networks in the west, said Salafism has strong roots in Catalonia. | Lorenzo Vidino, the director of the Program on Extremism at George Washington University and an expert on radicalisation and jihadist networks in the west, said Salafism has strong roots in Catalonia. |
| There is a long history of Salafism there, which is a different thing from violence and jihadism, so we have to be careful about that. There is a very extensive and entrenched Salafist community in Catalonia. | There is a long history of Salafism there, which is a different thing from violence and jihadism, so we have to be careful about that. There is a very extensive and entrenched Salafist community in Catalonia. |
| It’s not really in Barcelona. It’s really in the rural areas and the coastal areas. It’s almost exclusively Moroccan and started about 20 years ago with a lot of self-styled sheikhs. Keep in mind it’s a very rural migrant population living in poverty, it’s uneducated and a lot of people work in agriculture. You have these Salafist mosques which have traditionally received quite a lot of funding from the Gulf – the usual suspects, the Saudis, Qatar and particularly Kuwait. | It’s not really in Barcelona. It’s really in the rural areas and the coastal areas. It’s almost exclusively Moroccan and started about 20 years ago with a lot of self-styled sheikhs. Keep in mind it’s a very rural migrant population living in poverty, it’s uneducated and a lot of people work in agriculture. You have these Salafist mosques which have traditionally received quite a lot of funding from the Gulf – the usual suspects, the Saudis, Qatar and particularly Kuwait. |
| The community organises very large gatherings during the Christmas and Easter holidays, because it is the gateway for migrants who live in continental Europe. If you are a Moroccan living in Holland or France or Germany, you can fly back home, but a lot of people drive. If you drive from Brussels or Paris, you drive through Catalonia. It’s a very logical of way of going. | The community organises very large gatherings during the Christmas and Easter holidays, because it is the gateway for migrants who live in continental Europe. If you are a Moroccan living in Holland or France or Germany, you can fly back home, but a lot of people drive. If you drive from Brussels or Paris, you drive through Catalonia. It’s a very logical of way of going. |
| So they do these very large gatherings, so you will see in small towns, say of 10,000 people, gatherings on Christmas Day of five or six thousand people and only a few are Moroccans from Catalonia. The speakers are big sheikhs from Saudi, from Kuwait, from other European countries. So that’s a very big scene there. | So they do these very large gatherings, so you will see in small towns, say of 10,000 people, gatherings on Christmas Day of five or six thousand people and only a few are Moroccans from Catalonia. The speakers are big sheikhs from Saudi, from Kuwait, from other European countries. So that’s a very big scene there. |
| Vidino stressed the distinction between Salafism and radicalisation and support for violence. | Vidino stressed the distinction between Salafism and radicalisation and support for violence. |
| There are different currents. There are currents there that are very conservative but not necessarily supporting violence. Having said that, it’s undeniable that that environment has created a milieu that is fertile for further radicalisation. It explains why there is more radicalisation than any other part of mainland Spain. | There are different currents. There are currents there that are very conservative but not necessarily supporting violence. Having said that, it’s undeniable that that environment has created a milieu that is fertile for further radicalisation. It explains why there is more radicalisation than any other part of mainland Spain. |
| However, radicalisation is measured by the number of foreign fighters going to Syria or Iraq. There is less of a problem in Spain that in northern European countries. Vidino said about 200 had gone from Spain, a quarter of those who have travelled from the UK and less than one seventh of the number of French foreign fighters. | However, radicalisation is measured by the number of foreign fighters going to Syria or Iraq. There is less of a problem in Spain that in northern European countries. Vidino said about 200 had gone from Spain, a quarter of those who have travelled from the UK and less than one seventh of the number of French foreign fighters. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 4.00pm BST | at 4.00pm BST |
| 3.34pm BST | 3.34pm BST |
| 15:34 | 15:34 |
| Further to the American who died in Spain, the US State Department says at least one more suffered a minor wound. | Further to the American who died in Spain, the US State Department says at least one more suffered a minor wound. |
| 3.27pm BST | 3.27pm BST |
| 15:27 | 15:27 |
| Sam Jones | Sam Jones |
| Details have begun to emerge of how one Catalan police officer shot dead four of the five attackers who tried to run people down in the coastal town of Cambrils in the early hours of Friday morning. | Details have begun to emerge of how one Catalan police officer shot dead four of the five attackers who tried to run people down in the coastal town of Cambrils in the early hours of Friday morning. |
| Police chief Josep Lluis Trapero, who is leading the investigation into the attacks, told a press conference on Friday afternoon that one officer had managed to kill all but one of the attackers. | Police chief Josep Lluis Trapero, who is leading the investigation into the attacks, told a press conference on Friday afternoon that one officer had managed to kill all but one of the attackers. |
| He said that it was “not easy” for the officer involved despite being a professional. | He said that it was “not easy” for the officer involved despite being a professional. |
| According to the Barcelona-based paper La Vanguardia, a team of Mossos d’Esquadra was stationed at a police checkpoint near the roundabout outside the Club Nautic restaurant when the attackers’ Audi A3 ran down three people before smashing into the police car. | According to the Barcelona-based paper La Vanguardia, a team of Mossos d’Esquadra was stationed at a police checkpoint near the roundabout outside the Club Nautic restaurant when the attackers’ Audi A3 ran down three people before smashing into the police car. |
| Seeing a colleague injured in the crash and noticing the terrorists emerging from their car with knives, machetes and axes, the officer raised his rifle and shot four of them dead. | Seeing a colleague injured in the crash and noticing the terrorists emerging from their car with knives, machetes and axes, the officer raised his rifle and shot four of them dead. |
| The fifth attacker managed to escape and stab a pedestrian in the face before he was shot by another officer with a submachinegun. | The fifth attacker managed to escape and stab a pedestrian in the face before he was shot by another officer with a submachinegun. |
| According to La Vanguardia, the officer who shot the four attackers had been due to go on holiday this week. He is understood to be receiving psychological support in the aftermath of the incident. | According to La Vanguardia, the officer who shot the four attackers had been due to go on holiday this week. He is understood to be receiving psychological support in the aftermath of the incident. |
| 3.15pm BST | 3.15pm BST |
| 15:15 | 15:15 |
| One American has been confirmed among those who died in Spain, the US secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, has said. | One American has been confirmed among those who died in Spain, the US secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, has said. |
| 3.07pm BST | 3.07pm BST |
| 15:07 | 15:07 |
| Haroon Siddique | Haroon Siddique |
| Richard Gregg, from Dartford, in Kent, is on holiday in Barcelona. He said it was only good fortune that prevented him being among the victims of the attack on La Rambla. | Richard Gregg, from Dartford, in Kent, is on holiday in Barcelona. He said it was only good fortune that prevented him being among the victims of the attack on La Rambla. |
| The drama teacher and his partner were on a side road trying to return to their apartment off the main thoroughfare when they became aware of a commotion. | The drama teacher and his partner were on a side road trying to return to their apartment off the main thoroughfare when they became aware of a commotion. |
| People were running, shouting: ‘People have been hit, there’s blood everywhere.’ We had nowhere to go apart from into Las Ramblas. We wanted to get back to our apartment and thought it might just be a car accident. It was quite surreal, literally. The van had just come to a stop on our road. Half the people didn’t know what had gone on at all. There was a large number of people from further up running away from what had happened. | People were running, shouting: ‘People have been hit, there’s blood everywhere.’ We had nowhere to go apart from into Las Ramblas. We wanted to get back to our apartment and thought it might just be a car accident. It was quite surreal, literally. The van had just come to a stop on our road. Half the people didn’t know what had gone on at all. There was a large number of people from further up running away from what had happened. |
| He said police were flooding the side roads looking for someone he now knows to be the van driver, while other officers attended to victims on the ground. | He said police were flooding the side roads looking for someone he now knows to be the van driver, while other officers attended to victims on the ground. |
| We have been out [today] on La Rambla to see where the van ended up and where everyone was hurt and we’re really grateful because if we’d been there two minutes earlier or the van had been two minutes later we would have been in the path of it without a shadow of a doubt. | We have been out [today] on La Rambla to see where the van ended up and where everyone was hurt and we’re really grateful because if we’d been there two minutes earlier or the van had been two minutes later we would have been in the path of it without a shadow of a doubt. |
| Gregg said he and his partner were shaken but determined to join the rest of their time in Barcelona before flying to Gran Canaria on Monday. | Gregg said he and his partner were shaken but determined to join the rest of their time in Barcelona before flying to Gran Canaria on Monday. |
| The mood is fairly defiant. There’s quite a large crowd gathering, of people determined they’re not going to let any form of terrorist atrocity detract from the way of life in Barcelona. At the end of the day we come from just south of London and had friends in the London Bridge attack. You can be caught up at any time, you just don’t know. We’re going to stay, we’re going to enjoy Barcelona as best we can. | The mood is fairly defiant. There’s quite a large crowd gathering, of people determined they’re not going to let any form of terrorist atrocity detract from the way of life in Barcelona. At the end of the day we come from just south of London and had friends in the London Bridge attack. You can be caught up at any time, you just don’t know. We’re going to stay, we’re going to enjoy Barcelona as best we can. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.16pm BST | at 3.16pm BST |
| 2.44pm BST | 2.44pm BST |
| 14:44 | 14:44 |
| Trapero said police have no information connecting a police shootout in Sant Just Desvern, near Barcelona, on Thursday with the Las Ramblas and Cambrils attacks. | Trapero said police have no information connecting a police shootout in Sant Just Desvern, near Barcelona, on Thursday with the Las Ramblas and Cambrils attacks. |
| “We can’t link this incident to any of the other incidents,” he said. | “We can’t link this incident to any of the other incidents,” he said. |
| Our graphics team have put together a timeline map of the attacks: | Our graphics team have put together a timeline map of the attacks: |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 4.33pm BST | at 4.33pm BST |
| 2.38pm BST | 2.38pm BST |
| 14:38 | 14:38 |
| Trapero confirmed that the Cambrils attackers were wearing fake suicide belts. | Trapero confirmed that the Cambrils attackers were wearing fake suicide belts. |
| “They were carrying belts which looked like suicide vests, but in the end they turned out to be fake,” he said. “They were trying to simulate explosives.” | “They were carrying belts which looked like suicide vests, but in the end they turned out to be fake,” he said. “They were trying to simulate explosives.” |
| He said the investigation is focused on those in the building in Alcanar and the vehicles in Barcelona and Cambrils. | He said the investigation is focused on those in the building in Alcanar and the vehicles in Barcelona and Cambrils. |
| According to a BBC translation, he said: | According to a BBC translation, he said: |
| We think they [the suspects in Alcanar] were preparing at least one or more attacks in Barcelona. The explosion took out some of the material they were counting on to carrying out even bigger attacks than the ones that happened. | We think they [the suspects in Alcanar] were preparing at least one or more attacks in Barcelona. The explosion took out some of the material they were counting on to carrying out even bigger attacks than the ones that happened. |
| Because of that the attacks were carried out in a more rudimentary way than the one initially planned. | Because of that the attacks were carried out in a more rudimentary way than the one initially planned. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.18pm BST | at 3.18pm BST |
| 2.19pm BST | 2.19pm BST |
| 14:19 | 14:19 |
| Trapero also revealed that a single police officer killed four of the suspects who carried out the attack in the Catalan seaside town of Cambrils. He said it was “not easy” for the officer involved, despite being a professional. | Trapero also revealed that a single police officer killed four of the suspects who carried out the attack in the Catalan seaside town of Cambrils. He said it was “not easy” for the officer involved, despite being a professional. |
| A total of five suspects were killed after the Cambrils attack in which a car ploughed into a crowd, killing a woman. | A total of five suspects were killed after the Cambrils attack in which a car ploughed into a crowd, killing a woman. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.18pm BST | at 3.18pm BST |
| 2.17pm BST | 2.17pm BST |
| 14:17 | 14:17 |
| Sam Jones | Sam Jones |
| Trapero confirmed that the driver of the Barcelona van has still not been identified. He said one of the five suspects killed in Cambrils could have been the driver in Barcelona. | Trapero confirmed that the driver of the Barcelona van has still not been identified. He said one of the five suspects killed in Cambrils could have been the driver in Barcelona. |
| He added: “We’re working on the hypothesis that the authors [of the attacks] had been planning them both for a while in the building in Alcanar, but we can’t join up all the scenarios. It was a group – we don’t have a concrete number – but we’re not discounting the idea that they were planning other attacks.” | He added: “We’re working on the hypothesis that the authors [of the attacks] had been planning them both for a while in the building in Alcanar, but we can’t join up all the scenarios. It was a group – we don’t have a concrete number – but we’re not discounting the idea that they were planning other attacks.” |
| Trapero said there would be more news in a few hours. | Trapero said there would be more news in a few hours. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 3.20pm BST | at 3.20pm BST |