Barcelona attack: 13 killed, 100 injured as van ploughs through crowd, Islamic State claims responsibility

At least 13 people were killed after a van mowed through crowds of tourists in Barcelona’s Las Ramblas.

A woman cries as she and others are escorted by Spanish policemen outside a cordoned off area after a van ploughed into the crowd, killing 13 persons and injuring over 100 on the Rambla in Barcelona on August 17, 2017.(AFP Photo)

A van mowed through crowds of tourists on Barcelona’s most famous avenue on Thursday, killing about a dozen people in an attack that was claimed by Islamic State.

A Catalan government official said the death toll could rise above the 13 so far confirmed.
Joaquim Forn, from the Catalan government’s interior ministry, told a news conference that over 100 people had been injured when the van mowed down pedestrians in Barcelona’s city centre.

The head of the Spanish region of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont said two people had been arrested. It was still not clear how many attackers had been involved.

Witnesses said the white van zigzagged at high speed down Las Ramblas, a busy avenue thronged with tourists, knocking down pedestrians and leaving bodies strewn across the ground.

Islamic State’s Amaq news agency said: “The perpetrators of the Barcelona attack are soldiers of the Islamic State and carried out the operation in response to calls for targeting coalition states” - a reference to a U.S.-led coalition against the Sunni militant group.

The claim could not immediately be verified.

If the involvement of Islamist militants is confirmed, it would be the latest in a string of attacks in the past 13 months in which they have used vehicles to bring carnage to the streets of European cities.

That modus operandi - crude, deadly and very hard to prevent - has killed well over 100 people in Nice, Berlin, London and Stockholm.

Witness Tom Gueller told the BBC: “I heard screams and a bit of a crash and then I just saw the crowd parting and this van going full pelt down the middle of the Ramblas and I immediately knew that it was a terrorist attack or something like that.
“It wasn’t slowing down at all. It was just going straight through the middle of the crowds,” he added.
It was the deadliest attack in Spain since March 2004, when Islamist militants placed bombs on commuter trains in Madrid, killing 191 people and wounding more than 1,800.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Twitter he was en route to Barcelona. “Maximum coordination to arrest the attackers, reinforce security and attend to all those affected,” he said.

The Spanish royal household said on Twitter: “They are murderers, nothing more than criminals who are not going to terrorise us. All of Spain is Barcelona. Las Ramblas will go back to being everyone’s.”

US President Donald Trump said: “The United States condemns the terror attack in Barcelona, Spain, and will do whatever is necessary to help.”

He added: “Be tough & strong, we love you!”
Bodies on the ground
La Vanguardia newspaper said one of the suspected perpetrators had been killed in a shootout with police on the outskirts of Barcelona, but this was unconfirmed.

Catalan police said a driver ran over two police officers at a checkpoint in Barcelona after the van attack, but it was not clear if the incidents were linked.

Mobile phone footage showed several bodies strewn along the Ramblas, some motionless. Paramedics and bystanders bent over them, treating them and trying to comfort those still conscious.

Around them, the boulevard was deserted, covered in rubbish and abandoned objects including hats, flip-flops, bags and a pram.
Belgium’s foreign minister said a Belgian was among the dead.

Regional head Puigdemont said people had been flocking to hospitals in Barcelona to give blood.
Holidaymaker Ellen Vercamm told El Pais newspaper: “We saw a white van collide with people. We saw people going flying.”
A witness named Rebecca told La Vanguardia: “I’ve seen a lot of people knocked down on the floor and the people are running and crying. The van drove down the middle of the street dragging everyone with it.”

Tourist draw
The incident took place at the height of the tourist season in Barcelona, which is one of Europe’s top travel destina