One dead in ‘terrorist attack’ after man with machete targets churches in Spain
One person has died and others have been seriously injured following a machete attack in Spain.
Authorities say the incident saw a man storm multiple churches in the southern city of Algeciras.
Spanish authorities are investigating what they said was a possible ‘terrorist’ incident.
Detectives say the suspect was arrested and is in the custody of Spain’s National Police.
The attack started around 7pm on Wednesday when the armed man went into the San Isidro church and assaulted a priest, who was seriously injured, the ministry said.
He then went to a second church, the Nuestra Señora de La Palma — a five-minute-walk away — where he entered and continued his rampage, assaulting the sexton.
The sexton, whose job it is to take care of the church and its maintenance, fled outside where the attacker dealt him the mortal wounds in a public square.
Spain’s National Court said a judge has opened an investigation into a possible act of terrorism.
The man killed was Diego Valencia, a sacristan at the Nuestra Senora de La Palma church.
Meanwhile the titular priest of the parish church of San Isidro, Antonio RodrÃguez, was among the injured and is in serious condition.
A priest from Algeciras told Spanish newspaper El País: ‘The attacker first went to the parish of San Isidro, where he attacked a person.
‘And, later, he went to the church in the Plaza de la Palma, where he ran into the sacristan in the street and attacked him right there, where he was left on the ground. Later he seemed to go to the church of Virgen de Europa, but I no longer know if he has arrived.’
All the churches are located in the centre of Algeciras.
President of the Junta de Andalucia region, Juan Manuel Moreno, tweeted: ‘Terrible and heartbreaking.
‘A sacristan has been murdered and at least one other priest has been injured in an attack that took place in Algeciras.’
The secretary general of Spain’s Episcopal Conference, Francisco Garcia, wrote on Twitter that ‘I have received the news of the incident in Algeciras with great pain’.
‘These are sad moments of suffering, we are united by the pain of families of the victims and for the Diocese of Cadiz,’ he added.
Algeciras is located near the southern tip of Spain and is home to an important port.
The attack comes after two people were killed in a stabbing in Germany.
Police say a man used a knife to attack several passengers at around 3pm local time.
The incident came as the train, travelling from Kiel to Hamburg, made its way towards Brokstedt station.
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