Terror attack
12 people have died and at least 80 injured police have confirmed after a van ploughed into crowds in a popular tourist area in the city centre of Barcelona this afternoon.
Terror attack happened right in front of us. White van drove into crowed and many injured #Barcelonapic.twitter.com/8quhxBkKRu
— Heather (@h_stewart03) August 17, 2017
Catalonia’s interior minister Joaquim Forn confirmed the incident is a terror attack which has killed 12 people.
La meva més rotunda condemna a l’atemptat terrorista de Barcelona. Podem confirmar 13 morts i més de 50 ferits. @mossos @solercampins pic.twitter.com/va0IlQejb0
— Joaquim Forn (@quimforn) August 17, 2017
Police also confirmed a man has been arrested in connection with the van attack and dismissed earlier reports that two armed men had barricaded themselves in a local bar after the crash.
No hay nadie atrincherado en ningún bar del centro de #Barcelona. Hay un hombre detenido y lo tratamos como atentado terorista
— Mossos (@mossos) August 17, 2017
A white van mounted the pavement and struck several people in a busy tourist area in the centre of Barcelona at 4.30pm GMT, and the driver then reportedly fled the vehicle on foot.
‼️ #Spain: There is an arrest of a suspect in connection with Van terror attack at #lasRamblasin #Barcelona. 13 killed & 50 injured ppl. pic.twitter.com/7UgSAoqmhM
— Onlinemagazin (@OnlineMagazin) August 17, 2017
Emergency services are still urging people to stay away from the area around Placa Catalunya.
At the time of the incident the Ministry of the Interior said on Twitter: “There has just been a massive trampling on the Ramblas in Barcelona by a person with a van. There are injured.”
‼️ #Spain: Terror Attack! Van crashes into crowds of peoples near #LasRamblasin #Barcelonacity centre! pic.twitter.com/JYt92Gsnvp
— Onlinemagazin (@OnlineMagazin) August 17, 2017
The metro and train stations close to the crash on Las Ramblas have been closed by emergency services.
Marc Esparcia, a 20-year-old student who lives in Barcelona, told the BBC: “There was a loud noise and everybody ran for cover. There were a lot people, lots of families [at the site], this is one of the most visited sites in Barcelona.
“I think several people were hit. It was horrible, there was panic. Terrible.”
An eyewitness, lawyer Aamer Anwar, who’s at a conference in the city, told Sky News said: “All of a sudden, I just sort of heard a crashing noise and the whole street just started to run, screaming.
“I saw a woman right next to me screaming for her kids.”
“Police were very, very quickly there, police officers with guns, batons, everywhere. Then the whole street started getting pushed back.
“Police officers who got there just started screaming at people to move back, move back.”
This story is being updated…
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