Barcelona Attack BBC News Special

Hello, you are watching special coverage here on BBC News. Let's go

back to that breaking news in Barcelona, where police say they are

dealing with a terror attack after a vehicle ploughed into a crowded

pedestrians in the busy Las Ramblas area. Some local media reporting

that 13 people have died. Spanish police are treating it as a

terrorist attack. Police sources are reporting that number of 13 dead to

Reuters News Agency. Another critical line in the last little

while, police sources are also talking about them searching for two

perpetrators and there are reports of at least one person, in a cafe,

hold-up. It is thought they could be hostages in that situation. Those

are the latest details. That is what they are currently dealing with in

Barcelona. A huge police operation. This is the van where it came to

rest. Finally, after going at high speed down the road. Going onto the

pavement. This is the street, you can see from those pictures how

narrow and busy it is. These are the immediate moments after the van went

down the street. A short while ago, a witness said that the van went

past him and instantly, he knew from its speed, that there was something

wrong. He heard banging as it rode onto the pavement and it hits

stores. These are pictures from inside of shops as people ran for

safety and were ushered away. Hundreds of people were there in the

street. It was very busy at the time, lots of reports saying that

the streets were thronged with people. You can see in those

pictures people running outside as people try to rush away from where

the van had hit people. Dozens of people are reported to have been hit

by the van. Police are now saying that 15 people have now died but

there are reports of 20-25 injured, also, by the van. Tom Wheeler lives

near where the attack took place, he told me what it was like in the

moments as the van went past him. Let's hear again what he had to say.

I left my flat, and was walking to Las Ramblas to go to the Metro

station. I was 15 or 20 metres from the end of my road and I heard

screaming Festival. Then, a couple of crashes. -- first of all. It

mounted the pavement and knocked over all kinds of stores, and that

is when I saw the crowds parting as there was a massive throng of people

along Las Ramblas itself. The crowds were parting and that is when I saw

the van going at full speed down the middle of Las Ramblas. When I saw

that it was not slowing down, I realise that there was something

very, very wrong. So you actually saw the van itself travelling at

speed? Yeah, yeah. How fast was it going? I would guess 50 mph but it

is hard to tell. It was going fast. In such a tight street it must have

felt magnified, you must have known there was something wrong? As soon

as I saw the velocity of it, I thought, this is an attack. It isn't

just a slightly out-of-control van. As I ran back to my flat, 50 metres

away, it was traumatic. I ran into the shops, people were running into

shops and bars, shutters were coming down. The police cordoned off the

road entirely. And how busy was it in the streets before the attack? It

is packed, it is always packed. Some are in Barcelona is the ultimate

tourist attraction. It is difficult walking out pace down Las Ramblas

because there is always people around, it is so busy. It is

strange, five or ten minutes after, I heard another Big Bang. I don't

know what it was, I did not know whether it was a bomb or something

like that. There were more screens, it could have easily been someone

putting down their shutters forcefully but there was another

bang. There were a few people who started running away again. Right

now, my road is completely cordoned off. You know, it is such a densely

populated street in terms of the amount of people along Las Ramblas,

in the space of 20 metres. At pace, you could easily hit 30 people.

People were running out of the way, you heard screaming, and... There

was not time for people to get out of the way because of the velocity.

Did you say you were back in your flat? What is clear is that Catalan

police, I reading this from my screen here, Reuters News Agency

reporting that they are still looking for the driver of the van.

Is it clear looking from your window this operation is still ongoing?

Absolutely, armed police are stationed on my road right now.

There are helicopters above. It makes sense that there is still

someone out as nobody is allowed anywhere right now. There are police

on the cord. All of the shops have their shutters down. I can see where

the cord and is at the end of my road. There are people gathered

there. -- cordon. It's one of those things, you never think that it will

happen to you, it's a mean that you will never see. Especially in

Barcelona. I don't know. When I moved here, I thought, at least you

do not have terrorism in Spain. Other then ETA, it is such a happy

place here, Barcelona, and for this kind of thing to happen, it

contrasts with what it stands for, you know? Our corresponded Richard

Galpin is monitoring several sources and every strand of information

coming in. What can you tell us? Spanish media are reporting, we do

not have confirmation, that 13 people have been killed and a

significant number of people injured. We do not have direct

confirmation of that so far. What we do know is that the van ploughed

through a large number of people. Video shows that and it is evidence

that people were on the ground receiving treatment. Police say that

the driver fled. The Metro stations and train stations were closed,

trying to find this person. There is now less information, what we were

hearing about two armed men being hauled up in a bar somewhere around

the area. We do not have more information on that but we do expect

a news conference in from police in the area. As you say that, that news

conferences currently going on. Let me bring you up to date with what

police on the ground are saying. They have just said that in terms of

numbers they are releasing at the moment, apologies, that is where the

line of the news conference was coming into us from. They say that

it is significant. One person has been killed and 32 injured. So there

is a mismatch in terms of what has been reported earlier. Locally,

reports of 13 people killed but police, in terms of their news

conference, this has just happened, I will repeat it, a significant

change in such a fluid situation, police reporting that one person has

died and 32 people have been injured. We will try and have that

news conference translated and bring you all of the detail in the next

few moments. Richard, it is still an ongoing operation? Absolutely, the

van driver apparently fled so they will still be looking for at least

one person. There are reports of this ongoing situation inside of a

bar, where apparently there were reports of armed men inside of a

bar. There is no confirmation of that but clearly there is a massive

police operation and a large number of armed police across the whole

area. They are obviously in a high state of alert. It does not seem

this incident is at an end at the moment. Thank you. An additional

line from Catalan police, they say of the 32 people injured ten are

seriously injured. That news conference just completed. We will

try to bring you more in a couple of moments. Rees Richard is in

Barcelona and he witnessed some of the events today. Thank you for

joining us, can you tell us what you experienced? I was shopping with my

girlfriend, and a van was at the top of Las Ramblas, where the impact

happened. I turned around, to see what was going on. People started

screaming and police were scrambling down the road. I looked over, I had

a closer look and I could see that there was someone lying on the

ground, with a police officer performing CPR. There was another

next to that person. I did not think anything of it. I just thought

somebody had dropped down from a heart attack, and then with all of

the things that happened with London and across Europe, with these van

attacks, I thought, maybe this has happened? Panic began to and people

were running. There were more and more police. We were ushered into a

make up store. Just to take safety. The doors were shut upon us. After

that, half an hour later we were out. We started to head away from

the centre. There were armed police going past, a helicopter in the air.

I'm about to go through a tunnel so I may lose signal. Then, we went

through a toll station and there were armed police there, checking

cars for possible suspects. Can you tell me, you mentioned seeing the

casualties on the ground by that stage, was the van anywhere in your

side? All had it continued its journey at high speed further down

the street? I did not see any van at all, if I saw it I would have known

what happened but I did not see any van at all. And tell me, what is

happening now? We were hearing a little earlier that the operation is

still going on, as they try to search for the people who actually

did this? We just passed through a toll station with armed police and

they are checking cars. I assume for possible suspects. In Barcelona, as

we were walking away from the centre, there were helicopters and

police everywhere you could luck. Honestly, everywhere you could luck.

Sirens going off, and a general sense of panic. Your line is going

in and out so I will lead you there but thank you for giving me that

information, in terms of what you have gone through today. I spoke to

John Ward a short while ago, let me give you the latest information from

him. He says that he can now see, you will remember that he was

overlooking where the ban was, he can see police going door-to-door,

opening and questioning those inside of shops and restaurants, bringing

out shop owners in some cases, and escorting more people away. That

operation that we have been describing as ongoing is clearly

still happening there on the ground, as they move further and further

down the cordoned off area, trying to get people safe, and of course

they are looking for at least two perpetrators. I will be back with

Richard Galpin with more of the latest information but in the last

four while I spoke to Shelby from Bristol, who was in a market near

the scene of the attack. This is what she described seeing. We were

in a market. It is a long Las Ramblas. We were up on the Main

Street but we stopped to look at some cakes in a bakery then

suddenly, there was screaming and hundreds of people ran towards us,

screaming and running. We ran into the bakery and ran up the stairs to

hide. As we looked out of the window people were running through the

market, hundreds and hundreds of people. They were running through

the market and shutters were coming down. Lots of screaming and lots of

running. We waited a few minutes and it seemed to calm down and we were

told that we could go out. We went back into the market and a second

wave hit. We were told it was not safe and we had to get back inside.

Police swept through the market with guns. From where we were we could

see through the market, and there were about seven police officers

with guns, surrounding a doorway. That's the point where we just hate

under the tables, and upstairs in the bakery. We were just waiting.

There was a woman waiting and she ran off Las Ramblas, saying that she

heard gunshots. We were there about 40 minutes, I think a hiding. Then

we were told it was safe to come out but we had to move away from the

area. It sounds incredibly frightening? We are still a little

shaky, to be honest. You know, people around us are going back to

normal a little more now but the tourists are very shaken up, I

think. And certainly, what we are reading and what we are seeing, from

local authorities and reports from the scene, that clearly this is not

over, as they still try and find the perpetrator, or perpetrators, of

this attack? That's what we believe, what we have managed to work out.

There are police and ambulance is still on the street, and an

ambulance above us. We are told it is not yet over. And in terms of the

area where the police are, how large is the area where the security

operation is going on? It seems to be quite a large area. We are not

among the Main Street any more, so I cannot give any detailed information

on it. But there is a high police visibility and roads are shut. The

gates to the market are shut, the Metro is shut. They are clearing

everybody out the area. Give me an idea as to how busy it was at the

time? The pictures we saw in the immediate aftermath, it looks very

busy? It is so busy, much busier than yesterday, actually. It's a bit

of a surprise. There were hundreds of people, very busy. Those are the

pictures of the van in the centre of the screen as we ended hearing from

that latest eyewitness. Before I ask Richard the next question, it is

worth returning to what we heard from police. They clarify figures,

no surprise, in a fluid situation like this, that the numbers have

changed. They say that one person has died, 32 injured and ten

seriously injured. But, one would fully expect for that to change

again potentially in the coming minutes. Richard has been following

things. Just to put this in perspective, we have seen attacks in

several European countries. The UK, France and Belgium, but not in Spain

for the last few years? Not since 2004 when there was a very serious

attack, almost 200 people were killed and many hundreds injured in

the Madrid train bombings. In 2004, it happened just before the general

election and the belief was it was carried out by an Al-Qaeda cell, or

an Al-Qaeda inspired group of people. It was a very serious attack

and since then, as far as I have been aware, there haven't been any

major attacks, not carried out by Islamist militants. And in recent

times, we saw the van in those pictures, but that has become a

weapon used by terrorists in their attacks? We have seen it in several

different cities and it is so difficult to defend yourself from?

It has become a weapon of choice. We do not know who was behind the

attack. Certainly, we know that Islamic State and some other

hard-core Ms Bacha Khan militant groups, -- hard-core Islamist

militant groups, they have used these as weapons as they are easy to

get hold of, and you can cause a huge amount of damage. We have seen

every pattern, over the last year, you go back to the horrific attack

in Nice, when more than 80 people were killed in July of last year,

right the way through Berlin and Stockholm, and Paris, and is now in

London, two attacks using vehicles. What was interesting is that there

was an eyewitness saying that he thought that he saw the van veering

from left to right. That is also a hallmark of these attacks that we

have seen in the past where they try and hit as many people as possible.

That's just one eyewitness, not totally reliable, so that is one

thing that we thought we have seen. Some pictures of armed police, we

have heard how they are moving from street to street, as they are

looking for the perpetrators. You can see on the screen, you have

heavily armed response, as they are looking for the people who have

carried this out. That is going on. For intelligence services, in

moments like this, in the immediate hours afterwards, they are dealing

with so much. All of those questions about whether they have missed

things, they will come later. At the moment they are trying to find out

how many perpetrators there are and if there are more coming. Their

first priority is to protect civilians, so if they are worried,

the perpetrators of this attack are still at large, that is the top

priority and they will be devoting as many resources as they possibly

can to that. Large numbers of armed police on the streets. My instinct

is that there have been armed guards and police in buildings for some

time now. There was some concern about potential attacks, given what

happened in the rest of Western Europe. It is obviously now flooded

with armed police. And security services, intelligence agencies,

they will be working very hard. Looking at lists of people

potentially who will be suspects, they have a list of people who they

believe may have been radicalised, for example. They will be working

really hard. Some of the questions they will be turning their

retentions -- turning their attentions to. Exactly what we

heard, John Ward, reporting. We saw those pictures from him of armed

police moving down his street. Let's go back to Las Ramblas, John lives

on that street. Thank you, tell me more about what you have seen in the

last little while after Mark since I last spoke to you, things around the

van are fairly quiet. There was an initial burst of excitement. The

place right in front of me is still in lockdown. There was a heavy

police presence. What they have been doing is going from establishment to

establishment, knocking on doors and knocking on shutters. People have

opened the shutters and have been brought out onto the street. Once it

is established that they are not the people they are looking for, they

have been escorted away from this particular area. Nobody is moving

along Las Ramblas, unless they are under police escort. They are

putting police tape up, right in front of me. Underneath where I

live. The van is still there. Nobody has really touched it. The

fatalities, now, I would suggest that there are at least two right in

front of me. But obviously, that is not confirmed. I understand that

they are still there. They are obviously dealing with all sorts of

other things. I understand that, we have had the latest press conference

from police and they have said at the moment, figures they release one

dead and 32 injured, we understand what you say but we leave it to

police confirm that. Obviously unconfirmed. Catalan police are in

charge, they are in front of me now and they are searching buildings and

coordinating movement. The local police, they have cordoned off Las

Ramblas down to my right, and nobody is moving, unless police say so.

That is the situation at the moment. The van is still right in front of

me. It has not been touched for at least an hour. It must be very

concerning, to be there at the heart of things and seeing this going on

around you. I've heard it dozens of times but for the grace of God, I

have been walking -- I could have been walking through Las Ramblas,

doing what I do, for the grace of God could have been made. But here I

am. Have you heard anything more about these reports we've been

getting, as we sit here in London trying to make of those reports as

perhaps one person or two people holed up in a bar, potentially

holding other people? Have you heard anything? Nothing. Nobody is going

anywhere unless police say so here. Quite what is going on, the bakery

where the lady was speaking to you from earlier on, it is about 50

metres towards Placa de Catalunya. But I have heard nothing about the

perpetrators. John, we will leave you there. We are coming to the end

of our coverage on BBC World News for now. But let me give you the key

bits, as we continue to see the key pictures and key information, the

news conference from police in the last little while confirming one

dead, 32 injured and ten of those seriously injured. They are

continuing to search for the perpetrators. Let's get more now

from my colleague, Jane Hill. She spoke to an American tourist called

Tom Markwell, he was in Barcelona. This afternoon, I came in on a

flight, and I was in a taxi, just turning on to Las Ramblas. Maybe

just a block and a half from my hotel. I was looking at the

boulevard from the back of the taxi and I heard this group of people

screaming at the same time. You just do not think that naturally. Then, I

looked to my left and I saw a white van with its front looking like it

was breaking out. At first, I thought it must be somebody working

and driving, a service vehicle. Then I realised he was going entirely too

fast, and it looked to be as though he was going from left to right,

hitting people at the little stands, the people shopping. People were

screaming and they were running. My taxi stopped. We knew immediately

what had happened, what was going on. At that moment. We waited for a

second, my taxi driver just began to say, old, my God. I was in shock. --

oh my God. I was near my hotel and I ran inside. Everybody was running

into any space, to find safety. They were coming into the hotel and

screaming. Interestingly, I turned around and they began to run the

other way. That was when hotel staff put me behind the front desk and

down on the ground. At that point, it just seemed surreal. They got all

of us together into a room which was just off the entrance of the hotel.

To me, it did not feel safe at all because there was really nobody and

to the room -- there was nobody armed. I left the room and said,

give me a room key. I came upstairs, I thought I would rather be one

person in hundreds of rooms rather than hundreds of people in one room.

As I can see, everybody across the hotel, they are watching out of

their window, wondering what now? You are having to, in terms of what

you do next, are you having to base your actions on watching the

television following social media? Do you speak the language? Do you

feel cut off? What is your sense right now? I speak Spanish, but when

you see that, I thought to myself, maybe, I don't know, maybe people

got out of the way? I looked and I saw this lady laying sprawled on the

ground with blood, and I thought that this was going to be really

bad. Apparently I am watching the BBC now, and apparently there is

somebody holed up in a place nearby. So I am just going to stay in my

room for the night. I do not think there is anywhere I need to go that

badly, let's put it that way. Of course. Given what we have seen in

various European countries, in recent months, did you have any

qualms at all about being in Barcelona? You know, it's really

interesting, it was in the back of my mind. As I arrived. Not

necessarily Barcelona but it was in my mind, just thinking to myself,

you know, is it safe? You never think that it is going to happen to

you, you never think that you are going to see it. You just see it on

the news. That time that you do see it, it is so surreal that you cannot

even process it. Obviously, there is always the question, whether you

should stay at home but you have two... Life goes on. It was

definitely the most horrible thing I've ever seen in my life.

you are watching BBC News BBC News, terrorist attack at the heart of

Barcelona. More than 30 people have been entered, ten of them seriously.

Police shouted at everyone. It was just a loud, crashing noise. Just an

immediate stampede. The vehicle flowed into people at Las Ramblas,

an area popular with two arrests. Spanish media have reported that two

armed men have barricaded themselves into a bar in the area. It is not

clear if they are connected to the van attack. URL in the BBC News

special on the events in the last few hours in Barcelona. Police have

said they are dealing with an ongoing terrorist attack after an

van ploughed into people in one of the busiest areas of the city.

Details have been coming through across the last few hours. Police

have confirmed that at least one person has died, 32 injured, ten

seriously. This incident happened at Las Ramblas, one of the most popular

two wrist parts of the city. Major thoroughfare. It is in the middle of

Barcelona, particularly popular with two wrist because of Bath and

restaurants. Witnesses have described hundreds of people running

down the streets, some hid in shops, and we spoke to one man who was

sheltering in a church. Spanish media have reported that two armed

men are holed up in a bar and some reports that they had taken hostages

but I have got to stress that particular line has not been

confirmed by police. Some of the details are still sketchy. We can

work out what we know. Over security correspondent has been following

this. Inevitably, we start with casualties and otherwise. The

authorities have not been keen to put specific numbers on that? We

have had one statement from the Catalan authorities, confirming one

dead and many injured. But they have stressed that was provisional. So

far, relatively little on the number of casualties. In terms of what

happened, it was striking that the police said quickly they were

treating this as a terrorist attack. It is the nature of what happened.

He posted quickly that it looked like the van mounted the pavement.

Las Ramblas, it is a very busy tourist area, especially in the

summer. That immediately gave the suspicion it was terrorist related.

And after the incident police said they believed it was. And we

regrettably talk frequently have soft targets. Again, this is an

example. And a methodology that has been used by groups over the years.

At Nice, a lorry on Bastille Day. Germany, driven into people at

Christmas markets. Stockholm, a van in the city centre. And add London,

we have seen London Bridge and Finsbury Park. We have seen this

methodology, often going for those high-profile, busy and iconic

targets like Las Ramblas at Barcelona. Thank you. We will let

you get more details. Thank you. We have been reflecting on what a

densely populated area this is, popular area. It could well have

been that a lot of local people, Spanish people have been caught up

in this. But Barcelona is a massive draw for tourists. And this

particular street, tourist hotspot. We have been talking to a lot of

tourists and we can talk to another one. I am joined by Kevin. An

American who I believe is on holiday in Barcelona. Explain what you have

witnessed in the city this afternoon. Hi. We are your own --

here on honeymoon. We were eating at the markets, next to Las Ramblas.

And in the corner of that market, as we were eating, suddenly hundreds of

people came running into the market, towards us. Knocking over tables.

Really panicking. People running. And did you understand what was

happening? Not at all. It was confusing but obviously people were

extremely panicked and we got up and started running as well. They were

ploughing into anyone. As we came out of the market, we were on Las

Ramblas, where the market had happened. We ran out of the market,

into a lot of people lying on the street, and a lot of casualties. The

first responder is coming to the scene. And what have people been

saying? I have spoken to a lot of people who have had similar

experiences over the last few hours? Some people talked about panic,

confusion, what would you say and what was going on? The people who

had been out there when it happened or just crying. Standing on the

street, weeping. And as we ran out, somebody said they hit all the

people. Just crying. It was very confusing because it was a lot of

activity happening. The police were coming from the north side, huge

crowds running from that side... Also running from where the accident

had just happened. And the armed police, with salt rifles -- assault

rifles sweeped the area. Everybody was panicked about which we, way we

should go. And you said that you had chosen Barcelona for your honeymoon.

Any conversations about where you wanted to go, where you felt

comfortable? Was this something that you thought about when climbing?

Previously we were in London and Stockholm, and the next destination

after here is Paris. We did talk a bit, these are high profile European

cities. We knew that these things could happen. But I guess you just

hope it is not going to happen to the people that you love. Try to

live your life. Of course. And how are you feeling now? You have

managed to get away, do you feel the authorities are in control of the

situation? What is your feeling? We were locked down right about, 20

metres from the final crash site. We could see all the activity and a lot

of people hiding, with police around. They didn't want anyone to

flee the area. The police wanted to keep the streets clear. Tense

minutes, hearing the helicopter overhead. That police running past

us with rifles, shouting. But finally they said that our area was

clear. Let us and others out. By the city is still feeling very tense,

metro shut down. No traffic allowed near Placa de Catalunya. People

cannot take the bus. We are doing a 6km walk home right now. We hope

that you get home safely. Thank you for talking to us. It is good of you

to talk to us after what you have been through. Thank you so much. We

can talk to another man, in fact another American two wrist --

tourist. In the area. Robert... Tell us about your experience. I was in a

store, about to purchase something and suddenly they said close the

tills, close the tills, nobody can read. -- leave. And long story

short, I was trying to make a purchase, they said no one can

leave, and after five minutes they said towards my general direction. I

did a 180 turn. Ran into a random apartment block. Block of flats. Ran

up some stairs. I thought it was probably not a good idea to be close

to any windows, stayed on the ground floor. Eventually the police told us

that we could leave, we walked, get was a pretty generally horrible

experience. Thank you for talking to us. The line is difficult. We will

let you go. But thank you so much for speaking to us. The Reuters news

agency has reported that police have found a second van they believe is

connected to this attack. The police have said that they have found a

second van and from what I understand it is at a different

town, not Barcelona. We will try to get you some details. And the US

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has been talking about this and he said

that the United States stands ready to assist the Spanish authorities.

United States standing ready to assist the Spanish authorities. We

can talk to a BBC correspondent at the city. He works for our

colleagues. I understand he is in Barcelona. Explain I am about 100

metres from the scene of the attack. I can see many police officers and

tourists are still being directed out of the area. It is one of the

most populous and crowded areas during the day and evenings.

Especially, tourists a large crowd they are

trying to direct out of the area. Helicopters overhead. Not letting

people go in, making sure people get out. And of course a lot of people

are following what is going on on social media, reports that have been

varying from different sources. Many people injured. Also, I saw in the

old town, historic parts of the city. Going from restaurants to

restaurants, door to door with guns, obviously looking for the man who

ran after allegedly attacking people as the driver. That just gives you

the sense of what is going on in the old town next to Las Ramblas. And

essentially the police trying to say to people just stay indoors?

Cordoning off streets? Stay inside? That is the situation as far as you

can tell? They want people as far away from the centre, you can hear

the chopper... Telling people, because the suspect is on the run as

many understand it, better not to come out. Don't come out to the

area. The area the attack happened and where they are searching. Thank

you very much. I imagine we will be talking to you over the course of

the next few hours. But we will let you talk to the authorities. Thank

you very much. One of my colleagues from the BBC Persian service in

Barcelona. Clearly, a lot of activity. Tourists, still very much

being cleared from central areas. We can also told, talk to a

correspondent, based out of Madrid. With that sense of distance, are you

able to stand back and give us a sense of partly what the Spanish

media have been saying and how this attack is being responded to across

the country as a whole? We have that official figure, one death confirmed

by Catalan authorities, but the Catalan ministers said that it is

going to be more. Reports that at least 13 dead. Quite wide reports in

newspapers across Spain. It has not been confirmed by authorities. Some

information about that van that was found. It was found in a town just

outside Barcelona, and the waiting for somebody to escape. The

authorities seem to be cheating that van as suspicious. Possibly with

some connection to this attack. We also have reports of three police

officers being hit elsewhere in the city of Barcelona. That has just

emerged. We do not know if that is connected. It is a chaotic scene, a

lot of confusion and we are waiting for some solid facts to come out

from the government and officials. And sadly, when you have an attack

of this nature it becomes almost instinct to talk about security and

has also of security is present in the area. But that in itself is a

difficult question because we have seen this trend of attacks on soft

targets. Busy tourist street. Local people and tourists. Soft targets.

The authorities would say it is only so much that they can do. Recently I

was speaking to a security official at the foreign embassy and he said

that he thought the Interior Ministry was very worried about

this. The Spanish Interior Ministry was extremely worried about the sort

of attack. It is very difficult to stop. Barcelona would appear to be a

very obvious target, it is so popular with tourists and so heavily

populated at this time of the year. Las Ramblas, it is just full of

people. Cars can get near it. A big police presence there but only so

much you can do. Obviously reacting quickly, but only so much you can

do. Armed police nearby. Thank you. We will get back to you over the

course of the next few hours but we will let you get more details from

the authorities. My colleague Andy is with me. You have been monitoring

all of the various outlets, looking at what the authorities have been

saying. It has been several hours, but still a good degree of

confusion. Assess what we know for sure? What we have got from the

Catalan police, who have been very good on updating people, we know

that we had a van mowing down a lot of people on Las Ramblas, the

pedestrianised area in central Barcelona. Several people killed. At

them, it stands at one, according to the police. Ten seriously injured.

32 total injured. That is the casualty figure at the moment. But

the media, Wakeley reporting that as many as 13 killed. Police have said

that they were looking for at least one suspect who managed to make

their way away from the van on foot. Police denying reports there had

been gunfire. That is what we have officially got on the record. But

other reports swiling around, two gunmen holed up in a local bar with

hostages. Those reports came out some time ago. Nothing further. That

particular point has been confused. A lot of Spanish media adamant about

that for a while. But the police have not been talking about that

angle? On the record, they said no gunfire. Police have said that was

not the case. This has been reminiscent of a lot of terrorist

attacks, you have got reports from all over the police and some of them

are accurate and some seem incredible, eventually turning out

to be correct. You remember that attacked her Norway, the explosion

at the centre of the city and then afterwards we had reports of gunfire

on an island far away. It was linked. It seemed incredible but in

the end they were linked. We have just got to wait and see which of

these reports are accurate. And the police have said that they could

not, would not, speculate on the motives for this. This is what we

always look for such a grim time. The hardest thing to work out.

Sometimes we never know. It is interesting that the police declare

this a terror incident. Why was that? Do they have information that

we are not party to at the moment? From the start it certainly looked

like a terrorist attack. The location, Las Ramblas, if you are a

terrorist, certainly Las Ramblas is the place that you would choose add

Barcelona. From the start it looked suspicious. But were clear it was a

police terrorist attack. We do not know if anybody has claimed

responsibility. We do not know how the police made that decision. But

they said it was political motives. We do not know if it is one man,

two... If this van in another location, near Barcelona is linked.

Several hours, still confused. But the central thing is that at least

one suspect is still on the loose. Thank you. I know that you're going

to be staying with us. And the confirmation that one person has

died, 32 injured. But Spanish media speculating that those numbers are

going to rise further. We can hear from one British holiday-maker. A

British solicitor on holiday. He told me what he had seen and heard.

It is a beautiful sunny day, Las Ramblas is in the centre of the city

and it is jam-packed with tourists. I was about to sit down and have

something to eat, but seconds later it was a crashing noise. The whole

street, screaming. Everybody started to run, so I started running and

shops shut, kids were screaming. After seconds, police officers were

out. I noticed yesterday when I arrived, it was a heavy police

presence. Guns were out. Ambulances and fire engines. We could see at

the top of the street, so many vans. I tried to get into a shop, people

were panicking and the shopkeeper said something about a van. I tried

to ask him and he said he thought that he had seen a van driving into

a crowd. Five, six people seriously injured. At that point, that

ambulance and Fire Brigade were on the scene and people were panicking.

We were pushed back and pushed back again. The police are absolutely

everywhere at the moment. That is just one of the many tourists that

we have been talking to. We can also speak to Ethan who was nearby. My

boyfriend and I or just walking back from the beach. We were just about

to cross Las Ramblas and we could sense that something was strange. My

boyfriend felt something odd. And all of a sudden, the police started

shooting at everybody to start running. It was a crashing noise.

But I was not going to stop and look back. It was an instant stampede

down all the streets. By Las Ramblas. We are in a church with

tourists and locals. The police are oversight. We're just waiting for

more news. It was scary to get caught up in this. And when you said

it was a stampede, literally you mean you and lots of people just

ran? The police told you to get out of the way? Anybody who has been to

Barcelona knows how busy this area is. It was just the police shouting,

screams... People turned round instantly. I had to stop to help a

small child up, who was knocked over. But people were obviously

getting separated from families, just running into shops nearby.

Shops were pulling down shutters. Locking doors. Some black people

were going to BC. These are really narrow streets, it was a heavy

stampede in the opposite direction. How many people are in the church?

About 80 people. Handing out food and drink. It is a large trucks,

next to Las Ramblas. They have locked the doors. I understand that

the police are outside, everybody just anxiously waiting to hear more.

And while you are inside the church, you only know what is going on

because you are following social media, watching television,

streaming TV? I have had about 50, 60 messages over the last ten

minutes. First one went to my parents. But from what we have seen

on television, we understand it is possibly a hostage situation going

on. It could be 100 metres away from the church where we are. It is in

lockdown. That is what I understand. That was a British to rest --

tourist talking to me earlier, sheltering in the wake of this

terrorist attack in Barcelona. This is BBC News, I'm Jane Hill.

This is our main story here this evening.

A terror attack in the heart of Barcelona - a van ploughs

into pedestrians in Las Ramblas, a district popular with tourists.

It was all of us, and police shouted at everyone to run. There was a

really loud crashing noise. I did not stop to look back. It was just

an immediate stampede in the opposite direction. Police in the

city confirm at least one person has died and more than 30 have been

injured. Ten are in a serious condition.

Spanish police say they are searching for the driver,

They are advising people to stay away from the area.

There have been reports on local media that two armed men have

barricaded themselves in a nearby bar. It is still not clear as to

whether that is connected with the gun attack. -- with the van attack.

You're watching a BBC News special on events in Barcelona -

we are staying with this one news story here on BBC News. In the last

few hours there has been a terror attack in Barcelona, police say that

they are dealing with an ongoing situation, a van ploughed into

pedestrians in one of the busiest tourist areas of the Spanish city.

So, to confirm what we know at this stage.

Spanish police confirmed at least one person has been killed and 32

injured. Ten are seriously injured. This happened, as you can see on the

map in that tourist area of Las Ramblas, on a major thoroughfare

through the centre of the city. It is particularly popular with

tourists because of markets, bars and restaurants. Over the last the

hours witnesses have described hundreds of people running down the

streets. People have spoken to us who were hiding in shops, in a

church. Spanish media is reporting two armed men have been in a nearby

bar and taken hostages but that specific line hasn't been confirmed

by police. Let's take a look at the scene live in Barcelona at the

moment. This tells its own story, reflecting exactly what all of the

eyewitnesses we have been talking to have been saying. That police have

been moving people out of the area as much as possible. The advice is

to stay indoors, and anyone who has been out on the streets have been

moved away and we have spoken to many witnesses here on BBC News in

the last few hours. They have been moved out of the key central area

for their own safety. The police cordon has been getting slowly

bigger, which is why the streets are looking very quiet. Not entirely

deserted there, but every witness we have spoken to have said that they

have been hurried down side streets, people have been running and police

have been moving people away. Certainly, at the moment, the advice

is to still stay indoors wherever possible. To reiterate, the casualty

numbers, as we understand them, there has been a lot of confusion

about this, the official police comment on that is one person has

died and 32 are injured. You may well have heard or picked up on

social media are far bigger numbers than that, sadly. That is partly

because Spanish media say that at least 13 people have died. That is

what is being said locally. Spanish police will not confirm that at this

stage. There is talk, first of all, to Will Geddes. A security

consultant, well known to us here at the BBC. We speak to him a lot about

these sorts of incidents. By chance, I gather that you are in Barcelona?

Can you explain what you have experienced today and what you know

of the situation? Absolutely. I have been down at the court in line along

Las Ramblas. I was actually hear a few hours ago. The view is, it's a

very small boulevard, in many regards. It is incredibly busy.

Every single shop or building contains a cafe, a shop, a

restaurant. It is packed, from dawn until dusk, with tourists. And

locals. I got reports, I was a mile away from the events taking place

and I got there as quickly as possible. The police cordon was

quickly mounted by authorities and they put it further out every ten or

15 minutes, moving the general public away. The sense here is,

business as normal. It may be partly due to people not being necessarily

aware of what has actually occurred today. And when you heard that this

was a van that had driven into pedestrians, one person that I spoke

to said that he watched it swerving, almost making a figure of eight, if

I can put it that way, swerving into pedestrians. What goes through your

mind about the modus operandi here? It's a typical and standard delivery

platform by terror groups these days. And extremists, we have seen a

lot of it recently and in North America obviously. Again, the

delivery of attack by vehicle is easy to mount and it is difficult to

prevent, other than with vehicle mitigation methods, putting concrete

blocks into key areas. Barcelona will be reconsidering their planning

to incorporate blocks around touristy areas in the city where

there is a vast number of people congregated. That plays into the

terror ideal. A lot of intelligence coming through now, there are

certain people who are quite jumpy. There are a lot of different reports

coming in right now, as you and I both know, in the first occasion of

terror incidents, there could be some unsubstantiated reports. Some

will be speculation but there have been confirmations that the second

vehicle, that this vehicle was also rented and one can assume, certainly

within a short period of time, that Spanish intelligence agencies are

all over it and looking into the individual and any known associates.

There will be thoughts of whether there could be other attacks in the

imminent period. And so, that presents an extremely worrying

scenario for the authorities, because, not to say that it could be

in Barcelona, but it could be in another city. How, given your

knowledge of this world, how do the authorities respond to that? Will

they have, for example, a plan of action for precisely this grim sort

of eventuality? In terms of prevention, it is incredibly

difficult without putting in physical barriers as a proactive

measure. I've been in many cities in the UK, and especially in London

where I live, but authorities have a very good heritage of dealing with

these kinds of incidents. Certainly, ranging right back to these events,

they have a good legacy of dealing in this capacity and certainly, all

agencies that are directly affected, there are supporters of Islamic

State, and they would have been preparing themselves after each

preceding attack, and as we have seen, many of these attacks have

involved a delivery of attack by a vehicle. Because, regrettably, that

is just so straightforward to do, is it as basic as that? Sadly, it is.

It is something which is, unfortunately, an element of our

everyday lives, and it is something that unfortunately any large town or

city cannot exist without unless it has a sophisticated public

transportation infrastructure. For the time being we will always have

vehicles on our roads but where there are cities who could feel that

they are vulnerable to this, they have to go on adopting a more robust

stance, certainly introducing bees concrete blocks and hostile vehicle

mitigation measures where they can. And unfortunately, the general

public should take reassurance from that rather than an alarmist

perspective, in that we had to live in fear. We are going to be safer

with protective measures all around us. And the only thing that could

truly prevent this kind of attack, and you and I reflected on this the

morning after the London Bridge attack here in the UK, ultimately,

because of what has happened here is relatively straightforward, as you

describe, only intelligence will prevent these attacks? Absolutely,

intelligence agencies, sharing intelligence between various

countries, that is key. You may have seen, I have on Twitter, various

names touted as the identity of the individual behind the attacks today.

And so, again, one must be cautious but agencies have sufficient

intelligence and many of those that have had those horrific attacks have

been known to a greater or lesser degree by agencies. The problem that

we face is one of resource. For those agencies, being able to

monitor and keep watch in various different forms. Those who could be

a potential risk to us. Will Geddes, it's good to have your time this

evening. The terrorism and security expert, who, by chance, is in

Barcelona. We are sadly well used to talking to Will Geddes in events

like this, and by chance he is in that Spanish city tonight and was

able to speak to us. There is actually a couple of important lines

coming from the Catalan police in the last few moments. And Reuters

News Agency. They say that police are telling them that they have

arrested one man. So, Catalan police telling Reuters News Agency that

they have arrested one man. Also, an important caveat, because they are

saying, police are saying, there is nobody held up in a bar in

Barcelona, and that is interesting. They are responding to several hours

of response in Pat -- reports in Spanish media that two men were

holding people in a bar. That came through in the last couple of hours

and Spanish media have consistently reported that and it appears Catalan

police wanted to explain that that element was not correct. So, police

are adamant that there is nobody being held up in a bar in Barcelona.

But just in the last few minutes, police have said that they have

arrested one man. Our correspondent Tom Burridge has been following this

year in the BBC Studios as well. Tom, you are very familiar with the

country too. Probably worth drawing breath for a moment. Firstly, as

ever, explaining exactly what police are thinking is this situation right

now? At the moment, police are not going beyond this casualty figure of

one dead. But the important phrase in the statement that we got from

the official from the Interior Ministry of the Catalan government,

they have a devolved government, with their own police force, that

was coming straight from their twitter feed. But the Catalan police

said that there could be more. The Spanish media, I am on their website

right now, the most read newspaper in the country, El Pais and El Mundo

say that there are at least 13 people dead. And the most popular

radio station. I would be very surprised if that death toll does

not rise. The Catalan police force, I think, we are now getting official

information from Catalan authorities, there is nobody holed

up in a bar in the centre of Barcelona. They have detained one

man in relation to the terror attack. It is interesting, actually,

on El Mundo's website, they have published a photo of a man which

they say has come directly from police, I'm not clear on whether it

has come from spat-- Spanish national police or from mozos, they

have a man on earth African origin with legal residency in Spain, they

have a photo of a suspect, a man wanted in connection with the

attack. That has been released online and we will have that photo

for people to see. It seems swift, given that this only happened in the

last three, maximum four hours. But it is a fast moving situation of

course. There was an earlier reference to finding a van in a

nearby area, not in Barcelona it self? Is a town that I am familiar

with, I had colleagues who went there for a story in the last couple

of years. It is a fairly small place 60 kilometres from Barcelona. Police

have found the van, information is coming from the mayor there, quoted

in Spanish press. You would be surprised if the basic information

is incorrect, he is essentially saying that this van has been found,

and it is thought that it could be linked to the attacks. At the

moment, I do not think we should read too much into this van, things

may become clear that actually this van has nothing to do with the

attack at all, but it is part of that investigation. And that's

coming from the town itself. And your thoughts on what kind of impact

that this has had upon people. And relating to Spain, and what the

national debate has been on terrorism and how vulnerable they

feel, what are your thoughts more broadly? People will remember the

bombings, several years ago, well before I was in Spain, on the train

system, small trains coming into the capital of Madrid. That was the

major terror attack in Spain in recent years. This does not seem on

that scale by any means but clearly it is a serious attack. It will

concentrate minds, I remember going around in the trade, -- in Madrid,

as I was jogging, I left there two years ago or so. There have been

other terror attacks in other parts of Europe. Spain had not been hit in

the time that I was there, in the five years or so in Spain. There was

a heavy police presence outside, the train station in the Madrid area,

that area of Barcelona, it is heaving. That particular area of Las

Ramblas, it is a labyrinth of tiny streets. It is a beautiful area. It

is a very packed and densely packed area. Of course, Las Ramblas is one

of the most famous places. A lot of locals avoid the area because it is

so packed with tourists on any day. The other interesting thing is, the

Catalan government, on a political step back from this, the Catalan

government is planning a referendum on independence from Spain at the

beginning of October. The Spanish and have said, you cannot do it, it

is illegal and against the constitution. This has been dragging

on for years. There a stand-off between the Catalan and Spanish

government. Mariano Rajoy, the Spanish Prime Minister, is going to

Barcelona now and that is not surprising. He will want to be

there, it's a big incident for the country. We will get a sense of

unity. Spanish media are saying in the next 12 minutes or so, we will

hear from the head of the Catalan government. He is expected to give a

statement, do not expect if it is delayed given the complexity and

lack of clarity and how things are only just becoming clearer by the

minute. Once he gets a statement, then we will get some actual

concrete facts wrong authorities. And the fact that he is giving a

statement, I guess it means that authorities are getting a hand on

the situation, and they know the facts on the ground. We will keep an

eye. Thank you. I know that you will be staying with us, Tom Burridge. A

suggestion that there will be a statement from Catalan police at

half-past. Keep an eye on that and see whether further details are

given in the news briefing. Let's speak to another eyewitness in

Barcelona at the moment. Charlie Parsons joins me on the phone. Thank

you for talking to the BBC. What have you experienced in Barcelona

today? I was cycling up Las Ramblas when suddenly a huge crowd rushed

into me, about ten or 20 metres in front of me. You freeze when that

happens. Obviously something was happening, there was screaming. I

froze, I was actually on a city bike that I needed to return. That was my

first thought and then I thought, I have to get to safety. I walked down

Las Ramblas, passing three or four people who had something that had

happened to them. There was blood, I could see them on the ground. I

showed it in a shop as it was closing its metal blinds. It was

quite a scary moment. Did you begin to understand what was happening or

was its sheer confusion? Obviously something had happened, I could hear

shots, it may have been police. I assumed it was gunfire of some kind.

There was clearly something awful that had happened. Having been in

London when the most recent London Bridge attack happened, I recognised

what it was. Your reaction is weird. You freeze, and I can literally

think of the time I went in... I went into the shop as they were

closing the shutters, as I say. Your first thought is, my God, what was

that about? In the shop, people were actually crying. I think some people

may have had friends outside who did not get in before the shuttle was

closing. I was thinking... This is awful. It was the scariest thing

that has happened in my life, for sure. Given that, it's very good of

you to talk to us, Charlie. Do you feel able to assess what the mood is

now? Admittedly, still only a few hours later, but have you been able

to get a sense of what local people are thinking and feeling about this?

Not just tourists? I don't know. I walked out the back door of this

place about 15 minutes after I had gone in. It was weird, it was

obviously before it had got to the news. So nobody was even really

aware of it. Barcelona life, which is very busy, was just continuing. I

don't know. Knowing from London, people will get on with their

business, they will not let it affect them. They did not seem to be

an error of panic, even though by the time I had to go up and around,

to get to where I was staying, and played a Catalina -- plaque at the

Catalunya was closed, people were just walking. It was scary in the

moment, the people may be curious about what had happened. I am sat on

a roof terrace and a helicopter has been circling since the incident,

looking for something. You can hear police sirens and ambulances that

life has to go on. I feel like staying in. I do not want to be

going out tonight, that is how I feel. It's really good of you to

speak to us. Thank you very much indeed. Charlie Parsons talking to

us from Barcelona, and explaining what he has experienced like so many

others in the last few hours in the Spanish city. Now, the Catalan

government has been putting updates on Twitter, and as we are now

familiar with, it is often on social media but announcements are made in

relation to these investigations and it is worth telling you that the

Catalan government is now saying on Twitter that there is confirmation,

sadly, that 13 people have died. At least 50 have been injured. This is

what they have been putting on to their Twitter, 13 people have been

killed and at least 50 are injured. Those are similar to the kinds of

figures that Spanish media have sadly been reporting in the last

couple of hours but we have only just had that confirmed. The Catalan

government have confirmed 13 people are dead and at least 50 injured. We

know, in the last little while, that one person has been arrested. Police

announced that in the last little while. One man has been arrested.

Theresa May, the British Prime Minister, issued a brief statement.

INAUDIBLE In response to that terror attack in

Barcelona. The British Prime Minister says that the UK stands

with Spain against terror. Donald Trump, from the US, has said that

America stands ready to help Spanish authorities after today's attack.

Just a final thought from you, just for now, Tom Burridge, a BBC

correspondent in Spain for several years. One person has been arrested

but grim news in terms of the death toll so far? A sad night for

Barcelona and Spain. It is a great city. I am genuinely gutted that

this has happened. As you say, this is coming in, a beneficial from the

Catalan government, 13 confirmed dead and 50 injured. I think that we

will have two, over time, see how seriously injured those people are

and whether the death toll will rise further. I am also reading that the

part of the city there is in lockdown and police have evacuated

bars and cafes. I think that the situation is currently ongoing and

facts are still coming out. Tom Burridge will stay with us, there

are suggestions that there may be another police update at half-past.

We will bring you any details that police give us there. You are

watching BBC News with continued coverage of a grim day in Barcelona,

a terrorist attack that has claimed 13 lives, and left at least 50

people injured. You are watching BBC News. We are, of course, staying

with this story throughout here on the BBC. In the wake of that terror

attack in Barcelona. One man has been arrested. Police have confirmed

that in the last hour. Let's talk to marry Emma Garrow, a journalist

there and a journalist in terror and security issues. Thanks for being

with us on the BBC. Given what we know about terror attack so far, in

van apparently weaving through pedestrians, according to one

witness, what are your thoughts about what has gone on here in

Barcelona? Hello, firstly, we have to consider that in Catalunya, there

is a level four or five terror alert. One year ago, Isis threatened

to attack, among other European cities. It means the threat of a

terror attack in Barcelona, it was really high, according to Spanish

national police and Catalan police. It is because, due to some key

points, it makes Catalunya different to other Spanish regimes. Firstly,

we must consider that in Catalunya, there are more than 500,000 Muslim

people and 90% of them come from Morocco. Compared to 1,800,000

people living in Spain. Of course, it means the risk, according to

numbers, is higher in Catalunya. Another key point we have to

consider is that in Catalunya we have a second generation of Muslims,

living in the region. Something that you can find in other parts of

Spain. That is due to the fact that people from Morocco moved to

Catalunya earlier this part of Spain. In some places, not in

Barcelona but in other smaller places, you can find Muslim people

living in very poor conditions. And some especially young people try and

find something to identify themselves. Of course, they can fall

into this, of course. Just to come in here, the Catalan police have

said several times in the last few hours that they simply do not know

the motive for this attack, and they are not commenting on any motor that

the moment, they have said on a number of occasions. People watching

will be interested in that you say that Barcelona has been on a high

level of alert, level four. People watching may therefore think, should

there have been greater security? What sort of failure of intelligence

has gone on here? Has there been a failure of intelligence? If the

threat level was so high, and sadly, this has still happened. We have to

consider that, first of all, the most important terror attack in

Europe happened in Madrid, at the train station. To be honest, Spanish

police and Catalan police, they have done great work in the last 15 days.

To be honest, people in Catalunya and in Spain, if you talk to normal

people, they do not think that something like this could happen, of

course. I speak with my colleagues and friends, nobody thought that

something like this could happen in Barcelona. So maybe something

happened, talking about measures taken either police, it's really

important to discover which kind of terror attacks we are talking about.

If it is an organised attack, or not, or just one or two people

working alone. We have to consider that, two years ago in 2004, the

most important operation against terrorism in Barcelona, they

discovered that the leader of this operation was a Spanish mayor. He

was a normal man, and because they were fascinated by this kind of

religion. It was a fractured organisation leading to Isis in

Barcelona. The risk, in this way, wasn't so high. So it's really

important to discover which is behind this attack in Barcelona.

Thank you for your thoughts. A journalist based in Barcelona,

specialising on terrorist issues. You're watching the BBC News

special. Police have said they are dealing with an ongoing terrorist

attack. A van has ploughed

into pedestrians in one of the busiest tourist

areas of the city. The Catalan government officials

have said that 13 people have been killed, at least 50 injured. It

happened in the busy tourist district or Las Ramblas. It is a

major thoroughfare are particularly popular with tourists because of

bars and restaurants. Police have confirmed that one man has been

arrested, and witnesses have spoken about hundreds of people running

down the streets, some hid in shops. We spoke to one man who was

sheltering in Dutch auction -- in a church with 80 other people. Reports

that two armed men had been holding hostages in a bar but police have

said that is not accurate and nobody is being held anywhere. We can get

some international reaction to this terrorist attack. Speaking in

London, Theresa May said her thoughts are with the victims of

that terrible attack. She simply United Kingdom stands with Spain

against terror. President Trump said that the United States condemned the

attack in Barcelona and will do what ever business of Surrey -- whatever

is necessary one woman in Barcelona described the chaotic atmosphere as

the incident unfolded a few hours ago. Complete confusion. The police

or -- ordered us to close restaurants. You are panicking and

do not know how to react. We have closed the buildings. Doors are

bolted. Nobody can get out. It is complete panic. We do not know what

has happened. On the television we can see the crash but we do not know

any more than that. That was one young woman speaking to the Spanish

media. We have been talking to a British man in the city and the

discrete sheltering with other people at the nearby bakery. We were

in a large, open market area, off Las Ramblas when a very large number

of people ran into the market. Big wave. Are lots of screaming and

shouting. We ran into the bakery with four, five other people,

upstairs. Hunkered down. Ban enormous amount of people went

through the market. Coming from England it was remaining me of what

happened in London. We were very concerned. A lady said she heard

gunshots. We didn't know what was going on. A second wave came

through. A lot more screaming and shouting, followed by armed police

who seem to be sweeping the area, looking very cautiously. And then

they disappeared along one of the many alleyways off the market area.

We sat for 30, 45 minutes. Sirens, screaming. A few other waves of

people from directions. A lot of confusion. And then we saw the

pictures on Twitter, the incident on Las Ramblas. The place went quiet.

But everybody has been evacuated away from Las Ramblas. That was a

British man, on holiday in Barcelona telling us about his experiences. We

are going to be speaking to a lot more people who have witnessed what

has happened over the last few hours. But before we talk to more

people, we have this line from a local newspaper... It is reporting

that one of the attackers has died in a shoot out with police. This is

coming from a local newspaper. We are trying to get more clarity. But

Reuters has picked up on that. One of the local newspapers saying that

one of the attackers has died in a shoot out with police. We were

expecting another briefing from the authorities, possibly the police,

possibly the president but we were expecting that as, at half past this

hour. We may get that information. But something has been picked up on

by the local newspaper, that one of the attackers has died. We will get

clarity on that. I have been talking to an American tourist, Kevin, and

he was having lunch at a nearby cafe, where the van hit pedestrians.

We are here on honeymoon. We were eating at the market near Las

Ramblas. And at the corner of that market, as we were eating, suddenly

a crowd of hundreds of people came running towards us. Knocking over

tables and just real panic. People running. And could you understand

what was happening, did anyone know? Not at all. It was confusing but

obviously people were extremely panicked. We started running as

well. They were just ploughing into anyone, and as we started running

out of the market that because on to -- put us onto Las Ramblas, where

the crash had happened. We ran out of the market, into people laying on

the street, a lot of casualties. And the first first responders were

coming to the scene. And what work people saying? I have spoken to a

lot of people, some talked about panic, some talked about confusion.

What did people think was going on? The people who have been out there

when it happened were crying. Just standing on the street, weeping. As

with keynote, -- we came out, someone said they hit all the

people. It was very confusing because you have a lot of activity

happening on Las Ramblas, the police coming from the north side, huge

crowds from that side... Also running from where the accident had

just happened. And the police with assault rifles swooped the area,

started searching. Everybody was panicked about which way we should

go. It didn't seem clear in any direction. And you said you had

chosen Barcelona for you honeymoon. Did you have any conversations as a

couple about where you wanted to go, where you felt comparable? Was this

something you thought about when planning? Previously, we were in

London and Stockholm, and the next destination after a few -- here is

Paris. These are high-profile European cities where these things

can happen. But I guess you just hope it is not going to happen to

the people that you love. Try to live your life. Of course. And how

are you feeling? Have you managed to get away? A sense the authorities

are in control? What is your feeling about being there now? We were

locked down about 20 metres from the final crash site. We could see all

the activity, people hiding, armed police around. They didn't want

anyone to flee the area. They wanted to keep the streets clear. A tense

90 minutes. Police helicopters overhead. Police with rifles,

running and shouting. Eventually, they said the area was clear. They

ran us out. But this city, it is still very tense. Metro is shut. No

traffic near Placa de Catalunya. People cannot take the bus, metro

home. We are doing a 6km walk home now. Kevin, there. Speaking to me

about two hours ago. On honeymoon. Shaken up. Caught in that attack.

Weekend a some more thoughts from our correspondent. Monitoring

events. You were other correspondent in Madrid for some time. What have

you got? Still waiting for that official briefing? The latest Lane

is coming from the biggest newspaper in Catalonia. They have said in the

last 15 minutes that one of those responsible for running people down

has died, in an interchange of shots. I am translating this

directly from Spanish. An exchange of gunfire, at a place... I am

looking on Google. To the west of Barcelona. Basically, a suburb. That

is coming from one of the Catalonia newspapers. Suggesting that one of

the attackers has died. Were still waiting for this briefing to get

under way. And it is interesting, one of the people driving the van...

That is one of the things that we do not know, how many people were

inside the vehicle? Implying that it was more than one person. This is

coming out of her pretty trustworthy Catalonian newspaper. They are going

to have press on the groud, more than most. You would expect the

information to be more trustworthy than other sources. One of the

national newspapers for Spain have actually named the guy arrested, in

connection, with the attack. The suggestion that he had Moroccan

origins, but was legally resident in Spain. Those are the latest lines

from Spanish news. Senior representatives of the Spanish

government are on the way to Barcelona. Cancelling holidays, and

we think that we are going to speak to the head of the Catalonian

government. Catalonia has a very devolved government, and it is

interesting actually looking at Twitter, even tweeting in English.

That gives you a sense of how International Barcelona is. Tonnes

of tourists. Messages in Spanish, Catalonian and English. Thank you.

Our correspondent who has been following this. A lot of

international reaction. Picking up on that point, Barcelona is such an

international city. And so many responses from European capitals.

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel has condemned what she has described

as a revolting a tack, thinking with profound sadness of the victims of

this revolting attack. Solidarity and friendship with the Spanish

people. That was from Germany. We have also heard from the French

President Macron, saying that France remains united and determined. He

said it was a tragic attack and his thoughts were with the victims.

Similar thoughts from Theresa May, pledging help. She said that the

United Kingdom stands with Spain. Reaction from many European

capitals. The US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has been responding to

the attack as well. This is what he had to say. We offer condolences to

the loss of life and injuries that have occurred to so many innocent

people yet again. We will continue to monitor the situation and we

stand ready to assist one force and national security in Spain.

Consulates at Spain and the international team are currently

assisting Americans in Spain affected by these events. We ask

citizens to know your loved ones you are safe. Terrorists should know

that we are determined to find you and bring you to justice. Rex

Tillerson, the American Secretary of State, bringing reaction to what we

have witnessed over the last few hours. And some reaction to what are

correspondent has said, the reports from Spanish media. Referencing some

images that have been circulating, we can just show you one of those

images. We have had access to this and this has just been released by

Spanish police. Spanish police say this is the man alleged to have

rented the van used to have killed a a significant number of people. This

is the man alleged to have rented the van, used to mow down people in

Las Ramblas. The police have said that he is a suspect. This image has

been released by Spanish police and they said that this is the man who

rented the van, the van swerved to mow down people. The Catalonian

government has said that 13 have died, at least 50 injured. That

statistic is only from the Catalonian government, it could be

that those injured have been taken to a number of hospitals across the

region. We have not heard anything from the hospitals, it could be that

an awful what emerges from other sources. But the Catalonian

government has said that the death toll stands at 13, at least 50

injured. We have been talking to a large number of eyewitnesses over

the last few hours. Another was Patricia from Somerset. She was in

the area when the attack began. I was just walking to Placa de

Catalunya, to go to Burger King. We heard a crash. Thought it was a

bomb. We hid under tables. Held up in till they let us out. How long

were you in for? It was probably a couple of hours. And the police

escorted us in groups. What was going through your mind? Just happy

to be alive. We were worried that they were going to get in. Happy to

be safe. That was a British tourist, who witnessed the events that

Barcelona. I have also been speaking to an American tourist, he described

the moment he realised something was wrong. Hi. This afternoon, I came in

on a flight and I was in a taxi, coming on to Las Ramblas. Possibly

just a block from my hotel. I was looking at the Boulevard, everybody

was shopping. And then I heard this group of people scream, at the same

time. You just do not think about this, naturally. I would to my left

hand side and I could see a white van, and it was going, I thought it

was maybe just somebody working, driving, service vehicle. But I

realised that it was going entirely too fast, it looked to me like he

was going left to right, hitting people at stands where they were

shopping. People were just screaming and running. My taxi stopped.

Immediately we knew what was going on. We waited for several seconds

and my taxi driver just after saying oh my god. I was in shock. We turned

round the corner. I was literally at my hotel. I ran inside. Everybody

was running into any space they could find safety. Running into the

hotel and screaming. I turned round. People were starting to run the

other way. The hotel staff put me behind the desk. At that point, it

just seemed surreal. Then they got us all together into a ballroom.

That was just off the entrance. To me... That didn't feel safe. Nobody

was armed to protect the people. I left the room, and they gave me a

room key. I thought that I would rather be one person in one room

rather than one person with hundreds of others. And I am looking out of

the hotel and I can see everybody looking out of windows, wondering

what now? In terms of what you are going to do next, you are having to

base your action on watching television, social media? Do you

speak the language? Do you feel cut off? I do speak Spanish. And more

than anything, when you say that and I turned the corner... I do not know

what I was thinking. Maybe people got out the way! But then I looked,

and I just saw this woman on the ground, blood... I just thought this

is going to be really bad. Apparently, I am watching the BBC

just now and apparently somebody is holed up nearby. I am just going to

stay in this room for the evening. I do not think anywhere I need to go

that bad. After what we have seen in various European countries over the

last few months, any qualms about being in Barcelona? It is an

interesting question. It was in the back of my mind when I arrived. Not

necessarily Barcelona, but it was in the back of my mind. Thinking is

this safe? You never think it is going to happen to you, that going

to see that. You think you're just going to say this on the news. When

you do... It is just so surreal. You cannot even process it. Obviously,

always the question about whether people should stay home. But life

goes on. It was definitely the most unbelievable thing I have ever seen

in my life. That was an American to rest -- tourist, making reference to

watching television, that people were being held up in a bar. But the

police have categorically say that is not true. It was circulating but

the police have said it was not the case. Another American tourist was

in a shop when the attack happened and described the stampede as people

ran. I was trying to make a purchase, and they said nobody can

leave. Then they said if you want to, you can. Bad idea. People were

scared, running towards my general direction. I did a 180 turn. Ran

into a random apartment block. Block of flats. Ran up some stairs. I

thought it was probably not a good idea to be close to any windows.

Stayed on the ground floor. We were waiting for the police, a number of

people scared for over an hour. Eventually they told us that we

could leave, we walked. It was a pretty generally horrible

experience. That was one of the many American tourists we have been

talking to. And a British man spoke to me, he was in the middle of the

city when the attack began. It is a beautiful sunny day and Las Ramblas

is in the heart of the city. It is jam-packed. I was about to sit down

and have something to eat. The next thing, seconds later, the crashing

noise. The whole street. Screaming. Everybody started running. I started

to run in the same direction. Families, screaming. Kids out of

prams. And after seconds, police officers were out. When I arrived in

the city yesterday, I noticed the heavy police presence. After

literally seconds, guns out, ambulances and fire engines. At the

top of the street, vans. I tried to get into a shop. People were

screaming. I spoke to a shopkeeper and he said he thought he had seen a

van driven into the crowd, five, six seriously injured. At that point

that ambulances and fire brigade were on the scene, and police with

machine guns. People were panicking. We were pushed back and pushed back

again. The police are absolutely everywhere at the moment. That was a

British man speaking to me, a British lawyer in Barcelona. We're

going to keep you up-to-date with the story, the dreadful news about

another terrorist attacked in Europe. One man has been arrested

after a van ploughed into pedestrians at Las Ramblas in

Barcelona. The Catalonian government has said 13 have died, at least 50

injured. And reports across the Spanish media of one attacker being

killed in a shoot out with police. Continuing coverage here on BBC

News. Hello, I'm Philippa Thomas and you

are watching Outside Source. Terror on the streets of Barcelona is a van

ploughs into a crowd in the popular tourist area of Las Ramblas. The

Catalan government says 13 people are dead. The police shouted at

everyone just to run. There was a really loud kind of crashing noise.

I mean, I didn't stop to look back. It was just an immediate stampede in

the opposite direction. Catalan police confirmed they are treating

it as a terror attack. Within the last hour, they have made an