Barcelona Attack Suspect Killed, Police Says Int’l Probe Still on
The site of the attack – Las Ramblas – is one of the most popular tourist areas in Barcelona.
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- Police confirm that the Barcelona attack suspect who mowed down 14 people last week has been shot dead
- 120 gas canisters found in a house for one or more attacks, said police
- Terror attack was foiled in Cambrils town, five assailants killed on 18 August
- ISIS has claimed responsibility for the Barcelona van attack
- At least 14 were killed and 100 others injured after a van mowed down pedestrians near Barcelona’s popular tourist area of Las Ramblas
Four Suspected Barcelona Attack Plotters Appear in Court
Four men accused of being members of an Islamist cell behind a van attack that killed 14 people in Barcelona last week appeared in court on Tuesday, a day after the alleged driver was shot dead by police.
The four, the only ones still alive among the 12 men thought to constitute the group, were brought from Barcelona to Madrid where they were taken to the High Court under tight security for the hearing.
Police Confirm Barcelona Attack Suspect Shot Dead
Spanish police confirmed on Monday that Younes Abouyaaqoub, the man suspected of driving the van that killed 14 people in Barcelona last week, has been shot dead.
Police shot Abouyaaqoub, who was wearing a fake explosives belt, near Subirats west of Barcelona after a woman alerted them to the presence of a suspicious man.
The shooting of Abouyaaqoub means all 12 suspects identified by police are dead or under arrest, but the operation remains open, including at international level, Spanish police said.
120 Gas Canisters Found for 'One or More' Attacks in Barcelona
Police said on Sunday they have found more than 120 gas canisters in a house in Alcanar, where suspects of this week’s twin assaults in Spain were believed to be building bombs for “one or more” attacks in Barcelona.
“We're starting to see clearly that (the Alcanar house) was the place where they were preparing explosives for one or more attacks in the city of Barcelona,” police chief of Catalonia region Josep Lluis Trapero told journalists.
Van Attack Suspect May Have Crossed Into France: Police
Spanish police hunting for a suspect after the Barcelona attack that killed 14 people said on Sunday they could not rule out that he had slipped over the border into France.
Spanish police said security operations were under way in Catalonia and on the French border as they try to find Moroccan-born Younes Abouyaaqoub, 22, who they believe is the only one of 12 suspects still at large.
Spanish media have said Abouyaaqoub was suspected of being the driver, who fled after the attack. Trapero said he could not confirm who was driving, but said investigators believed only one person was in the van.
Spanish Police Release Names of 4 Suspects
Spanish police on Friday released the names of three Moroccan suspects in the deadly attacks in Spain's Catalonia region, shot dead overnight by security forces in the seaside resort of Cambrils.
Catalonia's regional police identified them as Moussa Oukabir, 17, Said Aallaa, 18, and Mohamed Hychami, 24. Police said they were searching for a fourth suspect, Younes Abouyaaqoub, aged 22.
Driver of Van Is One of the Men Shot Dead in Cambrils
The driver of the van that ploughed into crowds in Barcelona on Thursday was one of five men shot by police in the Catalan seaside resort of Cambrils hours later, Spain's El Pais and El Periodico newspapers reported on Friday.
Catalan police had said earlier that it was possible that the driver was among those killed in the second incident, but they were not certain.
Police Arrest Fourth Person Over Catalonia Attacks
A fourth person was arrested on Friday in connection with the attacks in northeastern Spain that killed 14 and wounded 130, Catalan police said on Friday.
Spanish police shot dead five would-be attackers after confronting them early on Friday in Cambrils, a town south of Barcelona where hours earlier a suspected Islamist militant drove a van into crowds.
First Suspect Named as Moussa Oukabir
After the voluntary surrender of the Driss Oukabir, police is now on the lookout for the a possible suspect Moussa Oukabir, Driss’ younger brother who is known to have stolen his brother’s identity.
Police sources have told Spanish media that the man they are looking for is Moussa Oukabir on suspicion of hiring the van used in the attack. Driss Oukabir has denied involvement and is reported to have told police that his identity documents had been stolen and used to obtain the vehicle.
Catalan police believe that Moussa Oukabir, whose is reported to be 18 according to El Pais, fled the scene of the atrocity, Guardian reported.
Eight Thought to Be Have Been Involved in Catalonia Attacks
Spanish authorities believe there may have been eight people involved in a cell which carried out an attack in Barcelona on Thursday, and that the group had planned to use butane gas canisters, a judicial source with knowledge of the investigation said on Friday.
Catalan government official Joaquim Forn also told local radio earlier on Friday that it was possible that attackers had meant to use canisters in the attack on Thursday in which a suspect drove a van at speed along a busy pedestrian street.
Another Suspect Arrested in Ripoll
Police have made another arrest in Catalan town of Ripoll on Friday, according to a local radio station. Two suspects were
The explosive belts worn by the five attackers killed by police in the Catalan resort town of Cambrils were fake, the Spanish region’s head Carles Puigdemont told local radio station RAC1 on Friday.
17 French Citizens Injured in Barcelona Attack
Around 17 French citizens were injured in Thursday’s attack in Barcelona, with at least 11 of them in serious condition, the French Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement.
The statement added that French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian would visit Barcelona later on Friday in order to visit those victims, and that the French consulate in Barcelona was in contact with Spanish authorities.
Terror Attack Foiled in Cambrils, Five Suspects Killed
Catalan emergency services said six civilians and a police officer were injured in an anti-terror operation in the town of Cambrils after Thursday’s van attack in Barcelona that killed 14.
Police shot four of the attackers dead and left another injured, who later succumbed to his injuries.
Catalan police said on Twitter that a bomb squad in Cambrils, a town in south of Barcelona, would carry out several controlled explosions after they determined that the attackers were carrying explosive belts.
They added that the situation in Cambrils was under control.
ISIS Claims Responsibility for Deadly Barcelona Van Attack
ISIS has claimed responsibility for the deadly Barcelona van attack in a statement carried on its Aamaq news agency, as per a report by AP.
It says the attack was in response to ISIS’ calls to its followers to target countries participating in the coalition to drive the extremist group out of Syria and Iraq. The statement provided no further details about the attackers.
2 Men Arrested: Police
According to a report by Reuters, two men arrested after Thursday’s attack were connected to the incident but neither was the driver of the vehicle, police said.
Spanish Police Release Photo of Man Who Rented the Vehicle
The Spanish police, according to BBC, released the photo of the man who allegedly rented the van used in the Barcelona attack.
14 Dead, At least 100 Injured: Catalan Officials
The president of Spain's Catalonia region Carles Puigdemont gave an updated casualty figure during a brief news conference on Thursday night.
Puigdemont says 12 people are confirmed dead and at least 80 have been hospitalised.
Forn also said on Twitter that more than 50 people were injured during Thursday's attack.
Incident Being Treated as a "Jihadist Attack"
The Barcelona van attack was a “jihadist attack,” Spanish PM said on Thursday.
Evacuation Underway in Las Ramblas
Catalan regional police say they are evacuating people from Barcelona's Las Ramblas area amid a manhunt after the van attack. Regional police now are evacuating stores and bars in the Las Ramblas district.
The move came right after police announced they had arrested one suspect and were “treating him as a terrorist”.
"Most Likely" a Terror Attack
The spokesperson for Catalan police told CNN that Barcelona incident is “most likely” a terror attack. Catalan police said they have activated protocols for attack, but cannot confirm motive behind Barcelona van crash.
No Report of an Indian Casualty Yet: Sushma Swaraj
India’s Minister of External Affairs, Sushma Swaraj tweeted:
US, France Among Countries Offering Support
US President Donald Trump tweeted on Thursday evening:
French President Emmanuel Macron also tweeted, offering solidarity with the victims, saying, “All my thoughts and solidarity from France for the victims of the tragic attack in Barcelona. We will remain united and determined.”
Even former US President Barack Obama expressed condolences after the attack on Thursday.
Two Armed Men Holed Up in Restaurant
Quoting eyewitnesses, Reuters reported that two armed men entered a restaurant, after a van ploughed into people in Barcelona’s city centre, killing two.
Local newspaper Spain's El Periodico reported gunfire in the area, although it did not cite the source of the information.
Two Dead
Two people were reported dead after a van mowed down dozens of people in Barcelona’s city centre.
Spain PM Says in Contact with Authorities
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Thursday he was in contact with authorities after a van mowed down dozens of people in Barcleona's city centre. Rajoy said on Twitter the priority was to attend to the injured.
Driver Flees on Foot
El Pais newspaper said the driver of the vehicle had fled on foot after mowing down dozens of people.
'Tourism Kills Neighbourhoods'
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 one video released under the slogan "tourism kills neighbourhoods", several hooded individuals stopped a tourist bus in Barcelona, slashed the tyres and spray-painted the windscreen.
Metro, Train Stations to be Closed
Catalan emergency services said on Wednesday after a van crash in Barcelona that they had requested that metro and train stations be closed in the area close to the Las Ramblas avenue in the city centre.
Van Mows Down Dozens of People
A van has crashed into dozens of people in Barcelona's city centre, local police said on Wednesday.
There were several injured in a "massive crash", police said on Twitter. Catalan emergency services said people should not go to the area around Placa Catalunya.
(With inputs from AP, Reuters and PTI.)
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