Barcelona terrorist attack: 1 dead, 32 injured as van plows into pedestrians in tourist area

 

One person has died and more than 30 others have been injured in a “massive crash” involving a van in Barcelona’s city center, local police have confirmed. Authorities have called the incident a “terrorist attack.”

Catalan Police have confirmed that one person was killed and 32 other injured, 10 of them seriously. They said they were treating the incident as a terrorist attack.


Police say the crash occurred after the van jumped the sidewalk, AP reported.

Authorities are looking for the driver of the vehicle, who escaped on foot, according to El Nacional.


Spanish public broadcaster RTVE has reported that one person has been arrested, citing police sources.


The Spanish passport of a person of Moroccan origin was left at the scene of the attack, Barcelona’s TV3 reported. Media reports say the suspect behind the attack is a man by the name of Driss Oukabir


The vehicle used in the attack was a rented Fiat van. The perpetrators had also rented a second car with which they had planned to flee, according to La Vanguardia.

Police located the second van connected to the attack in the Catalan town of Vic, Reuters reported, citing local authorities.

The crash occurred on the famous La Rambla, a street popular with tourists visiting the city.

A person tweeted following the attack that they were stuck in a restaurant, adding that armed police are “everywhere.”

 

Catalan Emergency Services tweeted that an incident occurred near Plaça Catalunya and advised people to avoid the area.

It said in a second tweet that the closure of rail stations in the area had been requested.

Authorities have cordoned off the area and shut down nearby stores. A helicopter is hovering above the scene.

 

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said he was in contact with authorities, stressing that the priority was to help the injured.

 

Photos posted on social media appeared to show emergency teams responding to victims.

https://twitter.com/Nick_Hedley/status/898203032873250818?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rt.com%2Fnews%2F399924-van-crash-barcelona-pedestrians%2F

Authorities have asked people to refrain from sharing pictures of those injured on social media, out of respect for the victims.

Vehicles have been used to ram into crowds in Europe in a series of terrorist attacks since July 2016, when the driver of a truck plowed into people celebrating Bastille Day in Nice, France, killing over 100 people. Similar attacks have since taken place in Berlin, London and Stockholm.