Barcelona: Panic as people use shop as escape route

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Footage captures the moment people took cover after a van ploughed into crowds in Barcelona.

BBC News

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A massive manhunt is under way in Spain for the man suspected of killing 13 people and injuring scores on Barcelona's Las Ramblas on Thursday.
Spanish media named the man being sought as 18-year-old Moussa Oubakir.
He is suspected of using his brother's documents to rent the van that mowed down people on the famous landmark.
Hours later, police killed five suspected jihadists in a second vehicle attack in the town of Cambrils. A woman injured in that attack has now died.
Police said the men killed in Cambrils were linked to the Barcelona attack, which the Islamic State group said it had carried out.
Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy condemned what he called a "jihadist attack" in Barcelona. He has announced three days of national mourning and a minute's silence was held at noon (10:00 GMT) on Friday.
Who is being sought?

Spanish media have quoted police as saying that they are seeking Moussa Oubakir, but they will not say directly that he is the man believed to have been behind the wheel of the van.
Two images of Moussa Oubakir have been used in the Spanish press, taken from social media.
The driver of the van fled on foot after mowing down tourists and locals on Las Ramblas.
Catalonia's interior minister, Joaquim Forn, quoted by Associated Press, said: "We had local police on the scene, but we were unable to shoot him, as the Ramblas were packed with people."
Spanish media say Moussa Oubakir rented two vans, the one used in the attack and another found hours later in the town of Vic, north of Barcelona, and intended as a getaway vehicle.
His brother, Driss Oubakir, was arrested after reportedly turning himself in on Thursday.
Reports suggest Driss Oubakir, in his 20s, and born in Morocco, told police he was not involved and that his documents had been stolen.
Two other arrests have been made. One man, born in Melilla, the autonomous Spanish city on the north coast of Africa, was held on Thursday.
The other arrest took place in the Catalan town of Ripoll on Friday.
Neither person has been named.
What happened on Las Ramblas?

A Fiat van was driven down the pedestrianised avenue on Thursday afternoon, weaving from side to side and deliberately targeting people.
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Las Ramblas is a central boulevard that runs 1.2km (0.75 miles) through the centre of Barcelona from the city's Plaça de Catalunya (Catalonia Square) to the Christopher Columbus monument at the seafront.
A businessman from New Orleans, who was just arriving in a taxi in Las Ramblas, said the van was "weaving left and right, trying to hit people as fast as possible. There were people lying on the ground."
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Kevin Kwast, who is on holiday in Barcelona with his family, said: "Hundreds of people started stampeding through the market... we started running with them going outside right into where casualties were already on the ground."
What happened in Cambrils?

Seven people, including a police officer, were hit when a car was driven into them early on Friday, Catalan emergency services said.
A woman was later confirmed dead.
The attackers' vehicle overturned and when the men got out they were quickly fired upon by police, media say. One was reportedly brandishing a knife.
The men were wearing explosive belts, police said, and a series of controlled explosions was carried out. The belts proved to be fake, Catalan regional head Carles Puigdemont later told local radio.
Police say the situation in Cambrils - a popular seaside resort 110km (68 miles) south-west of Barcelona - is now under control.
Who were the victims?

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Citizens of some 34 countries were killed or injured in the Las Ramblas attack, the Catalan government has said. One woman died in Cambrils.
Confirmed dead:

• Spaniard Francisco López Rodríguez, in his 60s
• Italian Bruno Gulotta, 35
• Unnamed Italian
• Unnamed Belgian

France's foreign ministry said on Friday that 26 French nationals were injured, with at least 11 in a serious condition.
Thirteen German citizens were wounded, some seriously. A five-year-old Irish boy suffered a broken leg.
There is a missing seven-year-old Australian boy who was separated from his mother during the attack, ABC reports. The mother was reportedly among the injured.
Taiwan and Greece are among those saying their citizens were injured. Pakistani, Philippine, Venezuelan, Romanian, Peruvian, Dutch, Danish, Algerian and Chinese nationals were also among the casualties, officials said.
What do we know about the victims?
What is the timeline of events?

• Alcanar, Wednesday evening: An explosion rips through a house in the small town, 200km south of Barcelona. One person dies. Police chief Josep Lluis Trapero said it appeared the residents at the house had been "preparing an explosive device". A Catalan government official says a cell may have intended to use gas canisters in the Las Ramblas attack
• Barcelona, Thursday 16:50 (14:50 GMT): A white Fiat van drives down Las Ramblas in central Barcelona, killing 13 people and injuring scores. The driver flees on foot
• Vic, Thursday 18:30: Police find a second van, thought to be a getaway vehicle, in the town, 80km north of Barcelona
• Sant Just Desvern, Thursday 19:30: A car is driven into officers at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Barcelona. A man is found dead in the car but the interior ministry denies earlier reports he was killed by police gunfire. The dead man is not believed to be linked to the Las Ramblas attack, officials say, but investigations are ongoing
• Cambrils, Friday 01:00: A second vehicle attack takes place in the resort south of Barcelona. Police kill five terrorist suspects said to be linked to the Las Ramblas attack

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Analysis: Low tech, high impact

Frank Gardner, BBC security correspondent
The practice of using a large vehicle as a weapon to attack pedestrians is not new. Palestinian militants have used it against Israelis, al-Qaeda encouraged its followers to do it seven years ago in its online magazine.
But the recent spate of lethal attacks in European cities stems in large part from a call made in 2014 by the now-deceased Islamic State propagandist, Abu Mohammed Al-Adnani.
He urged IS's followers to abandon elaborate plots in favour of simple, low-tech, high-impact attacks in the West. He specifically mentioned vehicles.
Now, with IS coming under massive pressure in the Middle East, where its caliphate is shrinking by the day, its remaining leaders are more determined than ever to strike back at those countries they blame for the end of their brutal rule.
So the onus will now be on governments to second guess where violent jihadists may be tempted to strike next and put measures in place to stop them.

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Europe's deadly vehicle attacks

• Paris, 9 August 2017: A man rammed a BMW into a group of soldiers, injuring six.
• London, 19 June 2017: A man is killed in a van attack on Muslims outside a mosque in Finsbury Park
• London, 3 June 2017: Eight people died when three jihadists drove a van into pedestrians on London Bridge and then stabbed passers-by
• Stockholm, Sweden, 7 April 2017: Uzbek Rakhmat Akilov killed five people when he drove a lorry through a shopping area
• London, 22 March 2017: Four people died when a car rammed into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, and the driver then stabbed to death a policeman
• Berlin, Germany, 19 December 2016: Tunisian Anis Amri ploughed a truck into a Christmas market at Breitscheidplatz, killing 12 people
• Nice, France, 14 July 2016: Tunisian Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel drove a truck into crowds on the Promenade des Anglais, killing 86 people on Bastille Day
• France, December 2014: A van was driven into a Christmas market in Nantes and a car rammed pedestrians in Dijon, leaving more than 20 wounded

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[dpSparhawk]

Myself and the family were only walking down Las Ramblas ourselves 2 weeks ago AND couple of days later went to Cambrils and were walking down the front and then through the old town. Suppose quite thankful it wasn't this week. Fucking cowardly scum once again. Problem is that we'll never be able to stop it from happening as who the hell knows when the next goat fucking cunt is going to start driving a heavy vehicle at people.

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The UK is urgently looking into reports that a child thought to have British nationality is missing after the Barcelona attack, Theresa May has said.
It is thought the boy could be Julian Alessandro Cadman, whose grandfather has appealed for information.
Tony Cadman said the seven-year-old had become separated from his mother during the van attack on Las Ramblas on Thursday, in which 13 people died.
Mr Cadman, who lives in Sydney, has posted an appeal on Facebook.
In addition to the 13 people killed in Barcelona, a woman died in a second vehicle attack in Cambrils, a popular seaside resort 110km (68 miles) south-west of Barcelona. Five suspected terrorists were also shot dead in the town.
A "small number" of Britons were hurt in the attacks, the Foreign Office has said.
Tony Cadman posted a photograph of Julian on Facebook and appealed for him to be found.
He added: "We have found Jom (my daughter-in-law) and she is [in a] serious but stable condition in hospital.
"Julian is seven years old and was out with Jom when they were separated, due to the recent terrorist activity."
According to his Facebook profile, Mr Cadman is from Gillingham in Dorset but lives in Sydney.
Mrs May has condemned the attacks and said the UK "stands shoulder to shoulder with Spain in confronting and dealing with the evil of terrorism, and I have offered any assistance we can provide".
Although she did not identify the boy, she confirmed the UK was looking into reports of a missing child who was a British dual national.
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In other developments

• The Spanish flag and the union jack are flying at half mast in Downing Street and at other government buildings
• The Queen has sent "sincere condolences" to Spanish monarch King Felipe VI, saying it was "deeply upsetting when innocent people are put at risk in this way when going about their daily lives"
• Figures from across the political spectrum have expressed their solidarity with the people of Spain

The Foreign Office has said it is "working to find out if any more [British nationals] need our help" and that the numbers of injured could rise. It also said it had deployed extra staff in Spain
It has set up a helpline - for people calling from Spain it is 112 and 012. From abroad it is 0034 93 214 21 24 and 0034 900 400 012.
The Foreign Office has also issued travel advice for those going to Spain.
"Our thoughts are with the victims of these terrible attacks and the people of Spain," it added.
'Absolutely terrifying'

Spain's civil protection agency said those killed and injured were from at least 34 different countries.
Stephanie Walton from Lincoln was in the area when the attack happened.
She describes a scene where people were running "for their lives" and recalls the sight of many flip-flops left discarded in the street.
"We ran into the café and they shut all the shutters. All I kept thinking about was the Paris and London attacks when they were coming into bars and hurting people.
"It was absolutely terrifying. When I turned around I saw bodies everywhere. It really is heartbreaking."
Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy has condemned what he called a "jihadist attack" and announced three days of national mourning.
A minute's silence was held at midday local time on Friday.
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The key suspect in Thursday's Barcelona attack, Moussa Oukabir, has been named as one of five men killed by police in the other attack site, Cambrils.
Police had earlier said they were searching for Oukabir and three other men, but only one remains unaccounted for. Four suspects have been arrested.
Thirteen people were killed when a van, rented by Oukabir, ran into crowds in Barcelona's Ramblas district.
Police say the suspects were planning more sophisticated attacks.
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