SPANISH PRIME Minister Pedro Sanchez yesterday dedicated ‘heartfelt remembrance’ to the victims of the Madrid terrorist attacks that took place on March 11, 2004
He also used the 19th anniversary of the atrocities to highlight the ‘strength’ of Spain’s democracy, ‘of our value system, in the face of fanaticism and extremism’.
‘It’s impossible for the passing of time to erase the memory of such an unreal morning,’ he said, in reference to the coordinated attacks on a series of Madrid commuter trains, and which claimed nearly 200 lives.
‘Today, like every March 11, we pay tribute to the victims, we feel the pain of the families and friends as if it were our own,’ he added.
The bombings took place just three days before Spain’s general elections, and were initially attributed to Basque terror group ETA. An official investigation, however, found that they were carried out by local cells of Islamic extremists.
The attacks were the deadliest ever carried out in Spain and the worst in Europe since 1998.
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