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ARCHIVED - The threat escalates as several more high-profile Spanish figures receive letter bombs
Explosive devices have been sent to the President of Spain, Defense Ministry and US Embassy in Madrid
Fears of a possible terrorist attack have gripped Spain over the last couple of days as a series of explosive letter bombs have been delivered to six high-profile targets, several linked to Ukraine.
It has been revealed that President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, was actually the first recipient of a suspicious package, which was delivered to him a week ago on November 24. The bomb was detonated in a controlled explosion and no one was harmed.
Since then, the Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid, an air force base and a Spanish weapons manufacturer supplying rockets to Kyiv have all been targeted and in the last 24 hours, similar letter bombs have been sent to the Defense Ministry and the US Embassy in Madrid.
Although the Secretary of State, Rafael Perez, believes that most of the packages originated in Spain, the Ukrainian ambassador, Serhii Pohoreltsev, has made some inflammatory remarks that appear to blame Russia for the attacks.
“We are well aware of the terrorist methods of the aggressor country,” he said. “Russia’s methods and attacks require us to be ready for any kind of incident, provocation and attack.”
His Russian counterpart in Spain, dismissed this apparent accusation, insisting that “any threat or terrorist act, especially those that target a diplomatic mission, is to be totally condemned.”
Perez, meanwhile, has stressed that the culprit has yet to be identified, and the authorities are still investigating whether or not the attacks are actually linked to the Ukraine-Russia conflict at all.
However, the similarity between the devices is impossible to ignore: they were sent in brown envelopes (at least four appear to have the same handwriting) and all contained gunpowder with an electrical ignition mechanism.
While the National Court is investigating the shipments as acts of terrorism, the Ministry of the Interior has so far refused to raise the anti-terrorism alert level, although security and protection has been ramped up around the public buildings that could be targeted.
Despite being a target herself, Defense Minister Margarita Robles said that the situation would not deter Spain from offering further support to Ukraine.
“The police are investigating these packages, but let one thing be perfectly clear,” she said. “None of these packages or any other violent act will change the clear and firm support that Spain and other NATO and EU countries have for Ukraine.”
Image: Wikimedia Commons
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