Barcelona attack: Van driver shot dead by police

in hichamoun •  7 years ago 

Spanish police have shot dead the main suspect in last Thursday's Barcelona attack, Younes Abouyaaqoub.
Police believe he was the driver of a van which careered down the Las Ramblas avenue, killing 13 and injuring more than 100 others.
He was killed some 25 miles (40km) west of Barcelona near a petrol station following a tip off.
Abouyaaqoub, wearing a fake explosive belt, is reported to have shouted "Allahu Akbar" ("God is Greatest").
An extensive manhunt was already under way when police closed in on the Subirats area, close to Sant Sadurní d'Anoia.
Bomb disposal officers went to the scene and used a robot to examine the fake explosive belt. This led to some delay before Abouyaaqoub could be officially identified.
The Catalan police said the operation was still under way and Cadena Ser radio reported that an extensive search was continuing for another man and a van.
Local residents described seeing some 20 police cars heading for the scene and helicopters circling.
BBC map showing scene of police operation west of Barcelona
Police said the investigation was still international in scope.
At an earlier news conference, police described how after the Barcelona attack, Abouyaaqoub made his escape on foot to the outskirts of the city where he hijacked a car.
CCTV footage in Spanish media appears to show him walking through a market district shortly after the attack.
Some 90 minutes after driving down Las Ramblas, Abouyaaqoub fled to the city's university district, police said.
He hijacked the car before driving it through a police checkpoint and later abandoning the vehicle.
Chief suspect in the Barcelona attack, Younes Abouyaaqoub, 21 August 2017Image copyrightCATALAN POLICE/EL PAIS
The male driver of the car, Pau Pérez, 34, from Vila Franca, was found stabbed to death in the back seat. Police named him as the 15th victim of the Barcelona bloodshed and a later attack in the resort of Cambrils.
A woman died in Cambrils when a car was driven into pedestrians and five suspected jihadists were killed at the scene by police early on Friday.
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Police have also confirmed that an imam suspected of radicalising the young men who carried out the attacks died in an explosion on Wednesday at a house in Alcanar, south of Barcelona, that was being used as a bomb factory.
The remains of one other person found at the house are still being examined.
The terror cell behind the attacks was 12 strong. Police say eight suspects are now dead and four are in custody.
The group had apparently been planning three co-ordinated attacks using home-made bombs, but were thwarted by the Alcanar blast. Police found about 120 gas canisters at the Alcanar site._97467486_mediaitem97467484.jpg

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