Solemn Spaniards Mark 20 Years Since Deadly Train Bombings

There were tears and emotional tributes Monday as Spain and the European Union paid tribute to the 192 victims of March 14, 2004, Madrid train bombings that marked the start of mass Islamist attacks in Europe

Madrid, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Mar, 2024) There were tears and emotional tributes Monday as Spain and the European Union paid tribute to the 192 victims of March 14, 2004, Madrid train bombings that marked the start of mass Islamist attacks in Europe.

Heads were bowed across the country as the victims' families, survivors and others observed moments of silence to recall the fateful Thursday 20 years ago when 10 bombs sowed carnage on four commuter trains during the morning rush hour.

"This was a day which shattered our lives in an irreparable way," Ana Cristina Lopez Royo, whose husband was killed in the bombings, told the crowd of survivors and officials at a ceremony near the royal palace, saying the carnage had affected thousands of lives.

"Although we cannot bring back the lives that were so violently taken... we can and must keep their memory alive," Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told the ceremony that was organised by Brussels, March 11 being the European Day of Remembrance "for the victims of terrorism".

"Anyone who has experienced such extreme violence first hand will never forget it.

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Spain's King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia also attended as did Margaritis Schinas, vice president of the European Commission.

At the Atocha station, people -- some wiping away tears -- left carnations and candles alongside a wall listing the Names of the victims, while others gathered for a memorial event at the remembrance grove in the nearby Retiro Park.

Although Spain had experienced decades of violence at the hands of the Basque separatist group ETA, it had never been hit by such a large attack.

Taxi drivers and the public pitched in to help the emergency services ferry nearly 2,000 wounded to hospital.

"Twenty years ago, we witnessed horror in Madrid. Twenty years later, on this EU day of remembrance for victims of terrorism, we don't forget the shock, the global solidarity and the victims of this hateful crime," European Council President Charles Michel wrote on X.

"Europe stands united against terror. Our fight will never stop."