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Holiday Brits in Majorca terror bombing
30 Jul 2009Tens of thousands of British tourists were trapped on Majorca today after a terrorist car bomb killed two police officers.
Planes and ships were forbidden to leave the Spanish island following the blast in the heart of its main package holiday strip. The bomb exploded at 1.50pm outside the Civil Guard base in Palmanova near the resort of Magaluf, which is packed with British families on their summer holidays.
The Spanish royal family was staying a few miles along the coast.
The bomb went off 50 yards from holiday apartments and half a mile from a crowded beach. It was immediately linked to the Basque terrorist group Eta.
Sealing the entire island will bring chaos for holidaymakers due to fly out of Palma de Majorca airport. It serves 25 British destinations and handles hundreds of flights a day in late July.
British tourists on nearby beaches or in their hotels heard the blast. Many were ordered to stay in their rooms while police checked the area for further devices.
“We all raced over to see what it was and we saw the black clouds of smoke coming from the police station.
“Peter's elder son Mitchell ran over and saw a charred body with no legs being pulled from the burnt-out wreck of the car. People were trying to resuscitate one of the victims but we don't know if they were successful. Children were crying hysterically. Then we were all ordered back into our apartments.”
The explosion happened a day after Eta blew up a Civil Guard barracks in the northern city of Burgos, injuring 60 people.
Eta, which marks its 50th anniversary of its founding tomorrow, has killed more than 850 people since it was founded in the Sixties.
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero's government called off talks with ETA in late 2006 after the group broke a ceasefire with an attack at Madrid's Barajas airport that killed two people.
Reader views (3)
The person to blame here is Zapatero
- Enrique Fernandez, Sevilla, 30/07/2009 23:14
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Someone must tell these lunatics enough is enough.
- Pat Mayo, Cork,Ireland, 30/07/2009 17:51
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What have they gained by murdering these two police officers?
- David Nigel Braham, Milan Italy, 30/07/2009 17:22
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