2004 Madrid train bombings
The March 11, 2004 Madrid attacks (11-M) were a series of ten bomb explosions that occurred aboard four cercanías (commuter trains) in Madrid, Spain, on the morning of March 11, 2004. At least 199 people were killed (181 died on site, 18 while under medical care) and 1,463 were injured, making the attacks the deadliest in Western Europe since the Lockerbie bombing of December 21, 1988, and inflicting the greatest number of casualties in any terrorist attack in a European country. Thirteen bombs are reported to have been used in all, ten of which exploded. It far surpasses the second-worst attack in peacetime Spanish history, a bombing carried out by the Basque armed group ETA at a supermarket belonging to the Hipercor chain in Barcelona in 1987, which killed 21 and wounded 40.
The Spanish government considers ETA the most likely culprit, although it has not ruled out other possibilities. Basque separatists, some international sources, and a van found outside the train station in Alcalá de Henares point to al-Qaida. There have been claims (so far unconfirmed) that a previously unknown Islamic fundamentalist group calling itself the Lions of al-Mufridun has claimed responsibility, while the London Arabic language newspaper Al-Quds al-Arabi on March 11 reported receiving a communication purporting to claim responsibility on behalf of an al-Qaida faction. On March 12, Basque newspaper Gara and Basque public TV Euskal Telebista received communications from ETA denying any involvement in the attacks.
The attacks
Summary
The explosions occurred during the morning rush hour, targeting a busy commuter rail line that runs just south of downtown Madrid. Four bombs (planted at the front, middle and rear of a single train) exploded at 07:39 at Atocha, and three bombs planted on a single train exploded simultaneously just outside the station at Calle Téllez. Two more bombs on one train exploded at 07:41 at El Pozo del Tío Raimundo. One further bomb exploded on a train at Santa Eugenia at 07:42.
Most of the casualties occurred at Atocha/Téllez (89 confirmed dead) and El Pozo (70) with another 17 at Santa Eugenia. Fourteen of the dead were said to come from ten countries outside of Spain: three from Peru, two each from Honduras and Poland and one each from Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Guinea-Bissau, France and Morocco.
Of the wounded, 17 have died in hospitals, 44 are in critical condition, 27 very seriously wounded, 153 seriously wounded, 157 in undetermined serious condition and 119 lightly wounded. 84 bodies remain to be identified, and it is suspected that families of immigrants are afraid to contact the authorities for fear of being deported for immigration violations.
The explosion at Calle Téllez appears to have been timed to coincide with the explosion at Atocha, but the train carrying the bombs was held by a red signal to let another late running train pass it into the station, and so exploded outside the station. Two unexploded bombs were found at the centre and rear of the train. The nine bombs aboard the Atocha and Téllez trains were, according to experts, designed to bring down the entire station at Atocha.
Security forces subsequently found and deactivated three additional undetonated devices, two at Atocha and one at El Pozo. These, according to the Spanish government, were booby traps set to explode when the rescue workers arrived. They are said to have been found in vehicles parked outside Atocha station.
All of the devices are reported to have been inside backpacks. Despite initial claims that the explosive used was titadine, a type of compressed dynamite normally used by ETA, Forensic analysis of one of the unexploded devices outside El Pozo has revealed the explosive to be of a different nature.
The police are investigating reports of two people coming onto and off the trains several times at Alcalá de Henares between 07:00 and 07:10.
The attack occurred three days before the 2004 Spanish general election.
Timeline
From El Mundo and Cercanias schedules
Four commuter trains bound for Atocha stopped at Alcalá de Henares between 0655 and 0715. During this time, they were loaded with bombs in backpacks or duffel bags.
- 0645
- The Téllez train departs Guadalajara, bound for Chamartín.
We are missing time that this train stopped at Alcalá. Cercanias schedule lists 6:35 and 6:50 trains.
- 0700
- The Atocha train departs Alcalá de Henares, bound for Alcobendas.
- 0705
- possible time that Tellez train departs Alcala? 6:35 train is scheduled to depart at 6:50 and 6:55; the 6:50 train at 7:05 and 7:10.
- 0710
- The Pozo train departs Alcalá de Henares, bound for Alcobendas.
- 0715
- The Santa Eugenia train departs Alcalá de Henares, bound for Príncipe Pío.
- 0739
- Three bombs explode on a train by Calle Téllez, 500 meters away from Atocha station. Seconds later, four bombs explode on another train on track 2 inside the station. The bombs on the first train, which was delayed by two minutes, were timed to explode inside the station.
The 6:35 train is scheduled to depart at 7:33, the 6:50 train at 7:45.
- 0741
- Two bombs explode on a train at the station in El Pozo del Tío Raimundo.
- 0742
- A bomb explodes on a train at the station in Santa Eugenia
The victims
The commuter rail line that was bombed originates at Alcalá de Henares, which is home to large Latin American and Eastern European immigrant communities, and serves industrial middle class towns, suburbs and neighbourhoods to the southeast of Madrid. Many of the 250,000 people using the line each day are students, blue-collar workers and middle-class people who can't afford to live in the city of Madrid and commute from the neighbouring communities.
People from 12 different countries (Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Ecuatorial Guinea, Honduras, Morocco, Peru, Poland, and Spain) died in the attack. The youngest victim is a 7-month old girl whose parents have not yet been found.
Responsibility
Although ETA has a history of mounting bomb attacks in Madrid, using delayed bombs on rescue workers and using booby traps (such as explosives in wallets), and has also attempted to attack trains, the March 11 attacks were on a scale far exceeding anything ever previously accomplished by a European terrorist group. This has led some to point out that the terrorists' tactics were more typical of Islamic terrorist groups. Observers have also noted that ETA customarily warns before its mass bombings and that there was no warning for this attack. Europol's director Jürgen Storbeck has said that the bombings "don't correspond to the modus operandi which ETA has adopted up to now". Further, with the attacks coinciding with the (monthwise) 2½ year anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attack of the World Trade Center in New York City, and with 911 days between that attack and this, it would appear to follow noted patterns of such terrorist groups choosing to strike on days of significance to them. Also of note to this theory is the similarities that both the Madrid attack and the attack of 9/11 were highly calculated attacks utilizing public transportation to inflict civilian casualties and mass devastation in a spectacular fashion. On the other hand, US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher was quoted early in the day as being unaware of a connection to al-Qaida.
ETA suspicions
Many in Spain regard the Basque separatist armed group ETA as the prime suspect in the attacks. These suspicions were voiced by Spanish Interior Minister Ángel Acebes who said "It is absolutely clear that the terrorist organisation ETA was seeking an attack with wide repercussions."
Spanish police had recently disarmed other bombs attributed to ETA and, on February 29, seized 500 kilograms of explosives and arrested two suspected ETA members.
In his first public comments on the attacks, Prime Minister José María Aznar made it clear that he believed that ETA was responsible, referring to the perpetrators as "the terrorist band" - the Spanish government's usual term for ETA.
The government had recently expressed cautious optimism that ETA was near defeat after mass arrests, seizures of weapons and explosives, increased cooperation from France and the banning of ETA's purported political front. The number of people killed in ETA attacks dropped to three last year.
On March 12, a Basque TV station and the Basque newspaper Gara reported receiving notes from persons claiming to represent ETA and denying responsibility for the explosions. (CBC)
ETA has claimed responsibility for more than 800 deaths since 1968.
Al-Qaida suspicions
ETA supporters and many international media commentators have suggested that al-Qaida could have been involved. Arnaldo Otegi, leader of Batasuna, a party banned in Spain for its alleged links to ETA, said he couldn't believe the attacks were the work of ETA "even as a hypothesis." ETA notably had always informed the media before perpetuating one of their attacks. Whilst indicating that ETA was its prime suspect, the Spanish government said that no possibilities had been ruled out.
On the evening of March 11, Interior Minister Ángel Acebes told a news conference that a van, stolen on February 28 and containing several detonators and an Arabic-language cassette tape with Koranic verses, had been found in the town of Alcalá de Henares, where three of the four bombed trains originated.
Yusuf al-Airi
According to informations made public on 12 March 2004 by the Norwegian Defence Research Agency FFI (Forsvarets Forsknings-Institutt), Intelligence Agencies had known for a couple of months that a terrorist attack, especially aimed at a country in an election period, was being planned. However, they interpreted the country to be Iraq. The supporting documents, written in Arabic, belonged to a certain Yusuf al-Airi and had been obtained by FFI after his death in May 2003. According to the FFI Muslim fundamentalism expert Thomas Hegghammer, the document described in details the tactics and strategies. The tactic was to break the US coalition by performing successive attacks on its members, beginning with the member that would be easiest to disperse, then others would follow one by one.
Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades
The London-based Arabic language newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi has reported receiving an e-mail communication from someone claiming to be from al-Qaida and claiming responsibility for the attacks. The letter was signed by the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades. The newspaper had previously received letters from the same group claiming responsibility, on behalf of al-Qaida, for the bombing of two synagogues in Turkey on November 15, 2003 and the U.N. headquarters in Baghdad on August 19, 2003. [1]
The letter referred to the bombings as settling old accounts with Spain the crusader, possibly a reference to the Christian reconquista of Spain that ended in 1492. Osama bin Laden has also previously used the term to refer to the United States and the United Kingdom, drawing a parallel with the medieval Crusades. Bush himself called the war on terror a "crusade" shortly after September 11. The letter also referred to Spain's alliance with the United States in "its war against Islam," and warned that a major attack against the US was "90 percent ready." The message warns that "soon the Death Smoke Squad will reach you and you will see your people dead in the thousands" and warns muslims around the world "not to come near civilian or military institutions of the USA."
The letter also states that "the death squad has penetrated the heart of one of the pillars of the crusader alliance, Spain, and dealt a painful blow," and asks "Aznar, where is America, who will protect you from us? Great Britain, Japan, Italy and the others? When we attacked the Italian troops at Nasiriya and sent you and the American agents an ultimatum to withdraw from the anti-Islam alliance, you did not get the message. Now we make it clear and we hope this time you'll get it." "We the Brigades of Abu Hafs al-Masri feel no sorrow for so-called civilians. If it is OK for you to kill our children, women, elderly and young in Afganistan, Iraq, Palestine and Kashmir, why should we not kill yours?" [2]
In November 2001, Spanish authorities arrested eight men suspected of being al-Qaida operatives, one of whom reportedly had past links with Basque separatists. Osama bin Laden issued a public threat in October 2003 to carry out suicide bombings against any countries joining the US-led invasion of Iraq, specifically naming Spain, which had some 1,300 soldiers on Iraqi soil at the start of 2004.
The Investigation
Forensic analysis of the undetonated bomb found in a backpack outside El Pozo indicates that neither the explosives not the detonators used in the attacks are of the type normally used by ETA. The detonators are made of copper, while ETA uses aluminium detonators. Also, the explosives are made in Spain, possibly by Explosivos Rio Tinto, unlike the Titadine brand explosive used by ETA. The design of the bomb also does not conform to customary ETA design. The importance of these findings is that this is the only complete bomb that has been recovered by the investigation.
Reactions
Disaster relief
- 0800
- Emergency relief workers start arriving at the scenes of the bombings and talk about a "catastrophe".
- 0807
- Police report "numerous victims" and talks about 50 wounded and several dead.
- 0832
- SAMUR, the emergency ambulance service, sets up a campaign hospital at a sports facility at Daoiz y Velarde. Hospitals are told to expect the arrival of numerous victims. Bystanders and local residents help relief workers.
- 0843
- Firefighters at El Pozo talk about 15 dead.
- 0900
- Police confirm the death of at least 30 people, 20 at El Pozo and about 10 in Santa Eugenia and Atocha.
Security measures
- 0800
- The "cage operation" operación jaula, designed to prevent terrorists from fleeing the city goes into effect and starts affecting transportation in, out and around the city.
- 0854
- RENFE shuts down all rail traffic in or out of Madrid. Line 1 of the Madrid metro is closed for security reasons.
- 0856
- Police blocks all streets adacent to Atocha and evacuates the station.
RENFE, the national railway operator, shut down the station at Atocha, but also at Chamartín and Príncipe Pío, the other train stations in Madrid. Thus, all railway traffic to and from Madrid was shut down, including commuter, regional, and intercity trains as well as the high-speed AVE service to Seville. International rail traffic to or from Madrid was also interrupted due to security concerns, although trains to or from France depart form Chamartin, Madrid's second largest train station. According to the French SNCF, this was done at the request of Spanish authorities.
Line 1 of the Madrid metro from Sol to Pacífico, with a stop at Atocha-Renfe in the train station itself, was also shut down.
Renfe organized alternative transportation, and transported 3,000 passengers by road.
Around 1830 traffic to and from Chamartín and Príncipe Pío was restored, including some commuter rail lines and northbound national and international traffic out of Chamartín.
In France, the Vigipirate plan was upped at the orange level. In Italy, the Government declared a state of alert.
Spanish reactions
Thursday, March 11
- 0840
- Ruling Popular Party suspends all their electoral campaigning.
- 0848
- Mariano Rajoy, PP candidate for prime minister, cancels all his electoral activity for the day.
- 0859
- Leading opposition party PSOE cancels all electoral campaigning.
The early morning attacks interrupted the preparations for the penultimate day of electoral campaigning before the Sunday elections. PM Aznar conferred with the king, then with leaders of political parties in parliament and regional presidents. By 11 am, a situation room (gabinete de crisis) had been formed including deputy PMs Rato and Arenas, interior minister Acebes, spokesman Zaplana and secretary Zarzalejos.
A decree declaring three days of official mourning was issued by the government, and demonstrations were called for Friday evening in cities across the country, under the motto "With the victims, with the constitution and for the defeat of terrorism". The Catalan government led by Pasqual Maragall also declared official mourning in Catalunya.
The first government official to make a public statement, two hours after the attack, was Basque president Ibarretxe, blaming ETA and saying "those who commit these atrocities are not Basque" and "ETA writes its own ending with terrible actions." In another early public appearance, interior minister Ángel Acebes pointed in unambigous terms to ETA, although by the end of the day he was forced to retract and admit that "no possibilities have been discarded." At this first press conference, Acebes stated that 10 bombs had exploded, and three more had been found unexploded and detonated under controlled circumstances by the police. It appears that only 12 bombs exploded, and that the thirteenth one was found at El Pozo and taken to a police station in Vallecas and later used in forensic analysis.
Catalan president Pasqual Maragall paraphrased JFK saying "we are all madrileños today" and continued "if terrorists intended to divide us, they will have achieved the exact opposite, and the best way to reject terror is to vote Sunday".
Carod-Rovira of Catalan nationalist party ERC, who had recently come under fire for secretly meeting with ETA and advocated dialog, said that he would not talk with ETA again, but someone should do so to get them to stop killing. "We thought we had already seen everything, but unfortunately that was not the case," he said.
Also before noon, Arnaldo Otegi, spokesman for Batasuna, which has been made illegal for its ties to ETA, went on record categorically denying the possibility that ETA was involved, and voice the hypothesis that "elements of arab resistance" were behind the attack.
The Spanish government obtained a UN Security Council resolution blaming ETA unambiguously for the attack.
The Spanish Interior minister ángel Acebes said ETA would be defeated "as long as we don't change the strategy we have been following over the last few years", in reference to the Popular Party's approach to Basque terrorism, which follows a harder line than previous governments and has been a campaign issue in the lead up to Sunday's elections.
By the time PM Aznar (at 1400) and the king made their public statements, doubts over ETA's involvement were substantial enough that both of them avoided naming a culprit, and referred just to "terrorists." PM Aznar insisted on the need to stay the course, echoing his Interior minister's earlier remarks.
Most TV stations reported the attack during their regular morning news programs, starting around 8am. The program at Antena 3 lasted until 2pm. Madrid newspapers issued special midday editions and TV stations pre-empted their regular programming. The public stations TVE (national) and Telemadrid (regional) did not break for commercials at all during the day. All TV stations replaced their logos with black ribbons at 6 pm.
People across Spain flocked to hospitals and mobile blood donation units in such numbers that the needs for blood for transfusions were more than satisfied by 1030, although continued support was requested for the comming days. Dead victims were sent to IFEMA, the largest convention center in Madrid, for identification by their relatives.
Friday, March 12
In a press conference held on March 12, a day after the attacks, Prime Minister José María Aznar, while not discarding any line of investigation on the perpetrators, said that "this is not the time" to discuss past foreign policy decisions. He also announced 140 million euros in aid to victims, granting nationality to affected foreigners, and the regularization of illegal immigrants affected by the attacks. He also said he does not give the benefit of the doubt to people to mouthpieces of illegal organizations, in reference to the comments of Arnaldo Otegi of Batasuna shortly after the attack took place.
Spanish political leaders across the political spectrum have responded by reaffirming democratic values, and stressing that terrorists don't achieve policy changes by killing nor by stopping to kill, a concept that is repeated after every terrorist action in Spain (usually by ETA).
However, those outside the ruling party have been urging the government to be clearer and more forthcoming about the information they have on the perpetrators.
Early in the morning, Socialist party leader José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero stated that "the political response must be different, according to whether it was an Al Qaeda or ETA attack". Later in the day, he limited his comments to demanding "the utmost diligence" in publicizing information regarding the attacks, and encouraged people to attend the demonstrations scheduled for the evening. He also called for a meeting of all major political parties on Monday to "stand up to the murderers" together.
Lehendakari (Basque regional president) Ibarretxe stated that "we have a right to know the truth and, above all, it is something that is owed to the victims and their families". He stressed that, while not changing the human tragedy, the political interpretation of this event depends on who is the author.
Carod-Rovira of ERC said he is convinced that "the government delays and hides information," and has demanded that the government clarify before the election whether Al Qaeda is to blame.
Claiming that the government held the information about the van found outside the Alcalá station, Jose Blanco of the opposition party PSOE said he believes the government will withhold information until after the March 14 elections. Similar statements have been made by members of the Basque regional government.
Gaspar Llamazares of IU asked the government to provide "the truth, all the truth and nothing but the truth", which is the phrase used for witnesses' oaths at a trial in Spain.
Rajoy, the ruling PP's candidate for prime minister and a member of Aznar's cabinet, stressed that he was more interested than anyone in knowing who was responsible, and he further noted that he lent no credibility to the claims of responsibility by an Al Qaeda group. He also said that "no distinctions can be made between terrorists".
Deputy PM Javier Arenas defended the idea that ETA is responsible, recalling that "they have attempted it on four occasions".
Aznar responded to criticisim by promising that "everything we know, we will tell the Spanish people".
Interior Minister Acebes insisted again that ETA is the most likely culprit, drawing parallels with attempted train massacres at Chamartín and Vall d'Aran during the Christmas seasons of 2002 and 2003, respectively. He reported the finding of another unexploded bomb in a duffel bag loaded with explosives and shrapnel, with a detonator of the same type as was found in the van on March 11. He also indicated that the Spanish government doubts, based on intelligence, that the claim of responsibility submitted to a London newspaper is authentic.
The Association of Arabic Entrepreneurs in Spain firmly condemned the attacks and said that the Arabic community feared for their personal security should a connection to Al Qaeda be confirmed.
Observances
In the wake of the attacks Prime Minister Aznar declared three days of national mourning. Flags were lowered to half-staff and all television stations showed a logo of a black ribbon.
The European Parliament declared March 11 a memorial day to commemorate the victims of terrorism.
King Juan Carlos addressed the nation directly for the first time (apart from his annual Christmas addresses) since defusing the attempted military coup of February 23, 1981. In his speech, he made no explicit reference to either ETA or al-Qaida. Queen Sofía, Crown Prince Felipe, and the Prince's fiancée Letizia Ortiz visited the wounded and medical personnel at Gregorio Marañón hospital. [3]
The European Parliament presidency has called for an EU-wide three minutes' silence at noon (11:00 UTC) on Monday 15 March.
Demonstrations and memorials
Spontaneous demonstrations, largely against ETA, broke out across Spain as the news of the attack became known, in advance of scheduled demonstrations set for the following day at 7:00 PM. [4] Basque Country President Juan José Ibarretxe condemned the attacks, saying that "when ETA attacks, the Basque heart breaks into a thousand pieces".He invited the Basque population to demonstrate in silence in front of city halls and municipal buildings.
| Protest turnout | |
|---|---|
| Madrid | 2 000 000 |
| Barcelona | 1 500 000 |
| Bilbao | |
| Valencia | 400 000 |
| Santiago de Compostela | |
| Seville | 700 000 |
| Zaragoza | 400 000 |
| Vigo | 400 000 |
| Oviedo | 350 000 |
| Cádiz | 350 000 |
| Murcia | 300 000 |
| Logroño | 100 000 |
| Jaén | 120 000 |
| Pamplona | |
| Valladolid | |
| Santander | 85 000 |
| Ourense | 65 000 |
| Las Palmas | |
| Lugo | 40 000 |
| Source: El Mundo | |
On March 12, two million of Madrid's 4 million people demonstrated in the pouring rain, with the cries "we were all on that train," "We're not all here, 200 are missing," "Spain united will never be defeated," "They are chickens without their guns," or "Murderers, murderers." Originally planned as a march from Plaza de Colón to Atocha, the demonstration filled the entire planned route of the march and the adjacent streets. A total of 11.4 million people (out of a population of 40 million) demonstrated in cities across Spain. [5]
Crown Prince Felipe and his sisters Elena and Cristina took part in the demonstration - the first time in history a member of the Spanish royal family has done so. Antonio María Cardinal Rouco, Archbishop of Madrid, also took part in his first deminstration. Prime Minister Aznar, European Commission head Romano Prodi, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Portuguese Prime Minister José Manuel Durão Barroso, and French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin also took part, as did the German, Swedish, and Moroccan ministers of foreign affairs. (Radio-Canada) (El Mundo)
Eight million demonstrated in cities across Spain. 1.5 million turned out in Barcelona, under the slogan Avui jo també sóc madrileny ("Today I too am Madrilenian"). Tens of thousands turned out in Bilbao, Seville, Valencia, and other cities across Spain.
World reaction
Sympathy poured in from capitals worldwide, led by Spain's partners in the 15-nation European Union. Neighboring France raised its terror alert level. In Athens, security also was tightened at train stations and the Spanish Embassy. Similar measures have been adopted in Italy.
World leaders were united in their condemnation of the attacks in Madrid. The United States, the United Kingdom and Russia said the attacks demonstrated the need for toughened resolve against terrorists.
Queen Elizabeth II sent a message of condolence to the Spanish King on behalf of the British people.
U.S. President George W. Bush called Prime Minister Aznar and King Juan Carlos to offer his condolences to the Spanish people and condemn the "vicious attack of terrorism". He expressed "our country's deepest sympathies toward those who lost their life. (...) I told them we weep with the families. We stand strong with the people of Spain."
The U.S. Senate unanimously passed a resolution expressing outrage and urging Bush to "provide all possible assistance to Spain" in pursuing the terrorists.
European Commission President Romano Prodi called the attack "ferocious and senseless". The European Parliament observed a minute of silence, its president Pat Cox expressed the parliament's condolences, and a resolution was introduced proposing March 11 as a European Day of Remembrance of Victims of Terrorism.
Pope John Paul II condemned the attack in a message to Catholic church leaders in Spain.
Many nations extended offers of material support to the Spanish government.
The UN Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 1530 condemning the bombings. This happened early in the day and, at the behest of the Spanish government, the resolution accused ETA unambiguously of being the perpetrator. The resolution "condemns in the strongest terms the bomb attack in Madrid, Spain, perpetrated by the terrorist group ETA".
UEFA and the Spanish Government and Football Federation decided that Spanish football teams due to play matches on 11 and 12 March should do so, rather than give the impression that the terrorists had disrupted normal life, and the teams are complying with this decision.
President Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland sent a letter of mourning to Juan Carlos and José María Aznar and declared 12 March the day of national mourning in Poland as a sign of solidarity.
There were demonstrations on March 12 in Brussels, Paris, Helsinki, Geneva, and Berlin. (El Mundo)
World economy
The attacks reawakened terrorism fears among investors. Stocks fell in London and in New York, where the Dow Jones industrial average dropped nearly 170 points. Tokyo stocks opened sharply lower the next day. Most European stock markets fell 2% to 3% on March 11, with the U.S. Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 1.6% that day, turning sharply negative after speculation of al-Qaida involvement. Airline and tourism-related stocks were particularly affected by sharp declines in share prices.
See Also
External links
In English
- News report from the BBC
- CNN coverage
- Yahoo! Full Coverage
- Photos from Reuters and AP
- News report from CBC
- U.N. Security Council Resolution 1530
In Spanish
- News report from CincoDías
- La Vanguardia: special coverage Dossier and initial News report
- News report from El Semanal
- Timeline by El Mundo.
- Information page from RENFE (Spain's national railway operator)
- Information page from Interior Ministry, mostly a List of wounded
- King Juan Carlos's speech to the nation (official transcript)