Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Van Mows down Dozens of Civilians in Spain | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Policemen check the identity of people standing with their hands up after a van ploughed into the crowd in Barcelona on August 17, 2017. AFP PHOTO / Josep LAGO


A van crashed into dozens of people in the centre of Barcelona on Thursday and several people were injured, police in the Spanish city said.

Police described the incident on Twitter as a “massive crash”. Emergency services said people should not go to the area around the city’s Placa Catalunya, and requested the closure of nearby train and metro stations.

El Pais newspaper said the driver of the vehicle had fled on foot after mowing down dozens of people.

While full details of the incident were not immediately clear, since July 2016 vehicles have been used to ram into crowds in a series of militant attacks across Europe, killing well over 100 people in Nice, Berlin, London and Stockholm.

In recent weeks, threatening graffiti against tourists has appeared in Barcelona, which draws at least 11 million visitors a year.

In one video released under the slogan “tourism kills neighborhoods”, several hooded individuals stopped a tourist bus in Barcelona, slashed the tires and spray-painted the windscreen.