KING Felipe VI paid tribute this Thursday to victims of terrorism during his speech at the annual Pascua Militar ceremony in Madrid.
The event held on every January 6 was first staged 240 years ago to celebrate Spain retaking the island of Menorca.
After a parade and a 21-gun salute, King Felipe gave a 20 minute speech from the Throne Room of the Royal Palace.
Felipe expressed his ‘affection’ for the Armed Forces and his gratitude for their ‘constant dedication to Spain’, including their current work overseas in Lebanon.
On the tenth anniversary of the ending of operations by Basque Country terror group, ETA, King Felipe said: “I want to honour with great emotion the memory and dignity of the victims of terrorism, many of whom belonged to the Armed Forces and State Security bodies.”
“We send their families a message of encouragement and admiration.”
As in his Christmas message, Felipe made no reference to his father, Juan Carlos, who celebrated his 84th birthday on Wednesday and is still living in exile in Abu Dhabi.
The monarch did though talk about work carried out by the military in 2021 in natural disasters like Storm Filomena; the River Ebro flooding; and the La Palma volcanic eruption.
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