The United States Department of State issued a chilling warning to Americans vacationing in Spain over the Christmas holiday; urging travelers in Barcelona to be vigilant against potential terror attacks in major tourist hotspots throughout the city.
“Exercise heightened caution around areas of vehicle movement, including buses, in the Las Ramblas area of Barcelona during Christmas and New Year’s. Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, and other public areas,” posted the department on social media.
#Spain: Exercise heightened caution around areas of vehicle movement, including buses, in the Las Ramblas area of Barcelona during Christmas and New Year’s. Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, and other public areas. pic.twitter.com/MPGiZwMwxq
— Travel – State Dept (@TravelGov) December 23, 2018
Las Ramblas and the surrounding area was hit with a major terror attack in summer 2017 when an ISIS-inspired fighter drove a van into a crowded pedestrian walkway; killing fourteen people and injuring over 100.
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On Thursday, unidentified assailants drove a white van through a busy pedestrian market in Las Ramblas, Barcelona. According to police, at least 13 people have been killed and at least 50 injured in the attack.
Police have confirmed that one man, identified by media reports as a Spanish national of North African descent named Driss Oukabir, has been detained in connection with the incident.
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Although the attack bears all of the hallmarks of recent ISIS-inspired Islamic terror attacks throughout Europe, Spain has also dealt with terror at the hands of Basque separatists in the past.