Spanish police on Monday shot dead an Islamist militant who killed 13 people with a van in Barcelona last week, ending a five-day manhunt for the perpetrator of Spain&#39;s deadliest attack in over a decade.

Police said they tracked 22-year-old Younes Abouyaaqoub to a rural area near Barcelona and shot him after he held up what looked like an explosives belt and shouted &quot;Allahu Akbar&quot; (God is Greatest). The bomb squad used a robot to approach his body.

Abouyaaqoub had been on the run since Thursday evening, after he drove at high speed into throngs of strollers along Barcelona&#39;s most famous avenue, Las Ramblas. After fleeing the scene, he hijacked a car and fatally stabbed its driver.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, which police believe was planned by a dozen accomplices, including a brother and two first cousins of the Moroccan-born Abouyaaqoub.

Abouyaaqoub had been the only one of 12 accomplices still at large. His mother, Hannou Ghanimi, had appealed for him to surrender, saying she would rather see him in jail than dead.

Of the other 11 in the militant cell, five were shot dead by police hours after the van attack, two were killed and one injured the day before in a blast in a house where they were apparently making explosives, and three were arrested elsewhere.

&quot;Shortly before 5 p.m., the police shot down Younes Abouyaaqoub, the driver of the van in the attack that killed 14 people in Barcelona,&quot; Carles Puigdemont, head of the Catalonia regional government, told a news conference. He said the bomb belt turned out to be a fake one.

An employee at a petrol station, along an empty stretch of road between the towns of Subirats and Sant Sadurni d&#39;Anoi, spotted a man resembling Abouyaaqoub and called the police.

Sant Sadurni Mayor Maria Rosell said all police forces in Catalonia converged on the town. Police found Abouyaaqoub hiding in vineyards and shot him dead a kilometre down the road next to a sewage treatment plant.

Cristiano Pecchi, an Italian tourist, first heard gunfire at around 4 p.m. (1400 GMT) Shortly afterwards, he said, up to 30 police cars arrived along with helicopters and ambulances.

&quot;I was just waiting for my car to be fixed and suddenly we heard gunfire and all hell was let loose,&quot; he said.

The scene unfolded 40 km (25 miles) from the spot, close to the FC Barcelona soccer stadium on the outskirts of the city, where police said Abouyaaqoub had seized the hijacked car.

Police said Abouyaaqoub had first fled Las Ramblas on foot amid the chaos of the attack, then commandeered the car, stabbing the driver, 34-year-old Pau Perez, to death before smashing his way through a police checkpoint and ditching the car in the nearby town of Sant Just Desvern.

The four people arrested so far in connection with the attacks are three Moroccans and a citizen of Spain&#39;s North African enclave of Melilla. They were taken on Monday to the high court in Madrid, which has jurisdiction over terrorism matters.

Abouyaaqoub lived in Ripoll, a town in the Pyrenees mountains north of Barcelona close to the French border.

Islamic State claims&nbsp;

Islamic State also claimed responsibility for a separate deadly assault, hours after the van attack, in the coastal resort town of Cambrils, south of Barcelona.

In Cambrils, a car rammed into passersby and its occupants got out and tried to stab people. The five assailants were shot dead by police, while a Spanish woman died in the attack.

In the roughly seven hours of violence that followed the van&#39;s entry into the central promenade of Las Ramblas on Thursday afternoon, attackers killed 15 people: 13 on Las Ramblas, the Cambrils victim and the man in the hijacked car.

Of the 120 injured on Las Ramblas, eight remain in a critical condition in hospital.

It was the deadliest attack in Spain since March 2004, when Islamists planted bombs on commuter trains in Madrid, killing 191 people, and the latest in a series of vehicular assaults on civilians in European cities claimed by Islamic State.

Two of the suspected plotters in Barcelona, including an imam thought by police to have helped radicalise his young conspirators, were killed on Wednesday night in what is believed to have been an accidental explosion.

About 120 butane gas cylinders were found at the scene of the blast, a house in the town of Alcanar, south of Barcelona. Police believe the pair were preparing a much larger attack with explosives, but the blast prompted their accomplices to adopt a new, less elaborate plan.

Spanish police said the international investigation was still open and have sought information on a visit the imam, Abdelbaki Es Satty, made to Belgium last year, said Thierry Werts, spokesman for the Belgian federal prosecutor&#39;s office.

Hans Bonte, mayor of the Belgian town of Vilvoorde, near Brussels, told VRT television at the weekend the imam had been there looking for work. Belgium has suffered several Islamist attacks and Vilvoorde has been a centre of Islamic radicalism.

The van driver, Abouyaaqoub, began showing more religiously conservative behaviour over the past year, said relatives in his native Morocco. He refused to shake hands with women during a visit to his birthplace in March, they said.

Abouyaaqoub&#39;s brother El Houssaine and first cousins Mohamed and Omar Hychami were among those killed by police in Cambrils. They were all originally from the small Moroccan town of Mrirt.

Islamic State also claimed responsibility for a separate deadly assault, hours after the van attack, in the coastal resort town of Cambrils, south of Barcelona

Spanish police on Monday shot dead an Islamist militant who killed 13 people with a van in Barcelona last week, ending a five-day manhunt for the perpetrator of Spain's deadliest attack in over a decade. Police said they tracked 22-year-old Younes Abouyaaqoub to a rural area near Barcelona and shot him after he held up what looked like an explosives belt and shouted "Allahu Akbar" (God is Greatest). The bomb squad used a robot to approach his body. Abouyaaqoub had been on the run since Thursday evening, after he drove at high speed into throngs of strollers along Barcelona's most famous avenue, Las Ramblas. After fleeing the scene, he hijacked a car and fatally stabbed its driver. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, which police believe was planned by a dozen accomplices, including a brother and two first cousins of the Moroccan-born Abouyaaqoub. Abouyaaqoub had been the only one of 12 accomplices still at large. His mother, Hannou Ghanimi, had appealed for him to surrender, saying she would rather see him in jail than dead. Of the other 11 in the militant cell, five were shot dead by police hours after the van attack, two were killed and one injured the day before in a blast in a house where they were apparently making explosives, and three were arrested elsewhere. "Shortly before 5 p.m., the police shot down Younes Abouyaaqoub, the driver of the van in the attack that killed 14 people in Barcelona," Carles Puigdemont, head of the Catalonia regional government, told a news conference. He said the bomb belt turned out to be a fake one. An employee at a petrol station, along an empty stretch of road between the towns of Subirats and Sant Sadurni d'Anoi, spotted a man resembling Abouyaaqoub and called the police. Sant Sadurni Mayor Maria Rosell said all police forces in Catalonia converged on the town. Police found Abouyaaqoub hiding in vineyards and shot him dead a kilometre down the road next to a sewage treatment plant. Cristiano Pecchi, an Italian tourist, first heard gunfire at around 4 p.m. (1400 GMT) Shortly afterwards, he said, up to 30 police cars arrived along with helicopters and ambulances. "I was just waiting for my car to be fixed and suddenly we heard gunfire and all hell was let loose," he said. The scene unfolded 40 km (25 miles) from the spot, close to the FC Barcelona soccer stadium on the outskirts of the city, where police said Abouyaaqoub had seized the hijacked car. Police said Abouyaaqoub had first fled Las Ramblas on foot amid the chaos of the attack, then commandeered the car, stabbing the driver, 34-year-old Pau Perez, to death before smashing his way through a police checkpoint and ditching the car in the nearby town of Sant Just Desvern. The four people arrested so far in connection with the attacks are three Moroccans and a citizen of Spain's North African enclave of Melilla. They were taken on Monday to the high court in Madrid, which has jurisdiction over terrorism matters. Abouyaaqoub lived in Ripoll, a town in the Pyrenees mountains north of Barcelona close to the French border. Islamic State claims Islamic State also claimed responsibility for a separate deadly assault, hours after the van attack, in the coastal resort town of Cambrils, south of Barcelona. In Cambrils, a car rammed into passersby and its occupants got out and tried to stab people. The five assailants were shot dead by police, while a Spanish woman died in the attack. In the roughly seven hours of violence that followed the van's entry into the central promenade of Las Ramblas on Thursday afternoon, attackers killed 15 people: 13 on Las Ramblas, the Cambrils victim and the man in the hijacked car. Of the 120 injured on Las Ramblas, eight remain in a critical condition in hospital. It was the deadliest attack in Spain since March 2004, when Islamists planted bombs on commuter trains in Madrid, killing 191 people, and the latest in a series of vehicular assaults on civilians in European cities claimed by Islamic State. Two of the suspected plotters in Barcelona, including an imam thought by police to have helped radicalise his young conspirators, were killed on Wednesday night in what is believed to have been an accidental explosion. About 120 butane gas cylinders were found at the scene of the blast, a house in the town of Alcanar, south of Barcelona. Police believe the pair were preparing a much larger attack with explosives, but the blast prompted their accomplices to adopt a new, less elaborate plan. Spanish police said the international investigation was still open and have sought information on a visit the imam, Abdelbaki Es Satty, made to Belgium last year, said Thierry Werts, spokesman for the Belgian federal prosecutor's office. Hans Bonte, mayor of the Belgian town of Vilvoorde, near Brussels, told VRT television at the weekend the imam had been there looking for work. Belgium has suffered several Islamist attacks and Vilvoorde has been a centre of Islamic radicalism. The van driver, Abouyaaqoub, began showing more religiously conservative behaviour over the past year, said relatives in his native Morocco. He refused to shake hands with women during a visit to his birthplace in March, they said. Abouyaaqoub's brother El Houssaine and first cousins Mohamed and Omar Hychami were among those killed by police in Cambrils. They were all originally from the small Moroccan town of Mrirt.

Barcelona attacker shot dead by Spanish police

An alleged member of the terror cell that unleashed carnage in Spain last week admitted to a judge Tuesday that he and other suspects had planned a bigger attack, a judicial source said.

Mohamed Houli Chemlal, 21, was the first of four surviving suspects to be questioned in Madrid&#39;s National Court, which deals with terror-related cases, over the attacks in Barcelona and a seaside resort that claimed 15 lives and wounded more than 100 people.

The Spaniard was injured in an accidental explosion at a makeshift bomb factory on Wednesday evening that killed an imam, Abdelbaki Es Satty, thought to have radicalised him and other young suspects.

Police had previously revealed that the suspected jihadists had been preparing bombs for &quot;one or more attacks in Barcelona&quot;.

Josep Lluis Trapero, head of police in Catalonia, said 120 gas canisters and traces of TATP components -- a homemade explosive that is a hallmark of the Islamic State group that claimed the attacks -- had been found at their bomb factory.

The accidental explosion in the house in Alcanar, south of Barcelona, may have forced the suspects to modify their plans.

&nbsp;Logistical support?

The questioning of the four suspects caps five days of angst following the vehicle ramming attacks in Barcelona and the seaside resort of Cambrils.

Spanish police shot dead Younes Abouyaaqoub, the suspected Barcelona van driver, on Monday in a dramatic end to the manhunt for the Moroccan national, who shouted &quot;God is greatest&quot; when he was killed.

He was the last fugitive member of a 12-man cell suspected of plotting the attacks.

Besides the four men detained, the rest were killed, either by police or in the explosion in Alcanar.

While Catalan police say the cell has been dismantled, investigators are trying to determine if it had logistical or other forms of support from other individuals.

Questions are also arising about the group&#39;s possible international connections.

Audi in Paris, imam in Belgium

In Belgium, the mayor of the Vilvorde region told AFP that Satty spent time in the Brussels suburb of Machelen -- next to the city&#39;s airport -- between January and March 2016.

On the other side of Brussels, the Molenbeek suburb has gained notoriety as a hotbed of international jihadists after the Brussels bombings in March 2016 and the Paris attacks in November 2015.

And in France, Interior Minister Gerard Collomb told BFMTV that the Audi used to mow down people in Cambrils had been detected by speed cameras in the Paris region while making &quot;a very rapid return trip&quot; days before the Spanish attacks.

Collomb is due to host Spanish counterpart Juan Ignacio Zoido on Wednesday for talks due to include anti-terrorism cooperation.

At least one of the suspects also spent a night in Zurich in December, according to Swiss police, which said it was too early to speculate about any connections with Switzerland.

- In bandages but fit -

The four suspects in court included Driss Oukabir, the older brother of Moussa who was killed by police in Cambrils on Friday along with four other suspects.

The others were Mohamed Aallaa, one of three brothers allegedly involved, and Salh El Karib, who manages a store that allows people to make calls abroad.

Chemlal, dressed in hospital patient clothing and with his right hand bandaged, was brought in after a doctor determined that he was fit for interrogation, a court spokesman told AFP.

Veteran magistrate Fernando Andreu is due to determine which charges to file against the four men and what role they may have played in the terror plot.

&#39;One or more&#39; attacks

Five days on, a clearer picture is emerging of the events that unfolded last week.

Abouyaaqoub used a vehicle to smash into crowds on Barcelona&#39;s famous Las Ramblas boulevard, killing 13 people and injuring more than 100.

While on the run, the 22-year-old stabbed to death the driver of a car he hijacked to get away.

Several hours later, a similar vehicle attack in Cambrils saw a car run into pedestrians, with one occupant jumping out and stabbing a woman, who later died.

Police shot dead the five attackers there, some of whom were wearing fake explosive belts.

Abouyaaqoub was gunned down on Monday in a village about 60 kilometres (40 miles) west of Barcelona, after receiving multiple tip-offs.

Police opened fire as he appeared to be wearing an explosive belt, which turned out to be fake.

The victims of the attacks were from three dozen countries including those as far afield as Australia, China and the United States. 
&nbsp;

Mohamed Houli Chemlal, an alleged member of the terror cell that unleashed the carnage, admitted to a judge that he and the other suspects had planned a bigger attack, a judicial source said

An alleged member of the terror cell that unleashed carnage in Spain last week admitted to a judge Tuesday that he and other suspects had planned a bigger attack, a judicial source said. Mohamed Houli Chemlal, 21, was the first of four surviving suspects to be questioned in Madrid's National Court, which deals with terror-related cases, over the attacks in Barcelona and a seaside resort that claimed 15 lives and wounded more than 100 people. The Spaniard was injured in an accidental explosion at a makeshift bomb factory on Wednesday evening that killed an imam, Abdelbaki Es Satty, thought to have radicalised him and other young suspects. Police had previously revealed that the suspected jihadists had been preparing bombs for "one or more attacks in Barcelona". Josep Lluis Trapero, head of police in Catalonia, said 120 gas canisters and traces of TATP components -- a homemade explosive that is a hallmark of the Islamic State group that claimed the attacks -- had been found at their bomb factory. The accidental explosion in the house in Alcanar, south of Barcelona, may have forced the suspects to modify their plans. Logistical support? The questioning of the four suspects caps five days of angst following the vehicle ramming attacks in Barcelona and the seaside resort of Cambrils. Spanish police shot dead Younes Abouyaaqoub, the suspected Barcelona van driver, on Monday in a dramatic end to the manhunt for the Moroccan national, who shouted "God is greatest" when he was killed. He was the last fugitive member of a 12-man cell suspected of plotting the attacks. Besides the four men detained, the rest were killed, either by police or in the explosion in Alcanar. While Catalan police say the cell has been dismantled, investigators are trying to determine if it had logistical or other forms of support from other individuals. Questions are also arising about the group's possible international connections. Audi in Paris, imam in Belgium In Belgium, the mayor of the Vilvorde region told AFP that Satty spent time in the Brussels suburb of Machelen -- next to the city's airport -- between January and March 2016. On the other side of Brussels, the Molenbeek suburb has gained notoriety as a hotbed of international jihadists after the Brussels bombings in March 2016 and the Paris attacks in November 2015. And in France, Interior Minister Gerard Collomb told BFMTV that the Audi used to mow down people in Cambrils had been detected by speed cameras in the Paris region while making "a very rapid return trip" days before the Spanish attacks. Collomb is due to host Spanish counterpart Juan Ignacio Zoido on Wednesday for talks due to include anti-terrorism cooperation. At least one of the suspects also spent a night in Zurich in December, according to Swiss police, which said it was too early to speculate about any connections with Switzerland. - In bandages but fit - The four suspects in court included Driss Oukabir, the older brother of Moussa who was killed by police in Cambrils on Friday along with four other suspects. The others were Mohamed Aallaa, one of three brothers allegedly involved, and Salh El Karib, who manages a store that allows people to make calls abroad. Chemlal, dressed in hospital patient clothing and with his right hand bandaged, was brought in after a doctor determined that he was fit for interrogation, a court spokesman told AFP. Veteran magistrate Fernando Andreu is due to determine which charges to file against the four men and what role they may have played in the terror plot. 'One or more' attacks Five days on, a clearer picture is emerging of the events that unfolded last week. Abouyaaqoub used a vehicle to smash into crowds on Barcelona's famous Las Ramblas boulevard, killing 13 people and injuring more than 100. While on the run, the 22-year-old stabbed to death the driver of a car he hijacked to get away. Several hours later, a similar vehicle attack in Cambrils saw a car run into pedestrians, with one occupant jumping out and stabbing a woman, who later died. Police shot dead the five attackers there, some of whom were wearing fake explosive belts. Abouyaaqoub was gunned down on Monday in a village about 60 kilometres (40 miles) west of Barcelona, after receiving multiple tip-offs. Police opened fire as he appeared to be wearing an explosive belt, which turned out to be fake. The victims of the attacks were from three dozen countries including those as far afield as Australia, China and the United States.

Barcelona terror attack suspect tells judge was planning bigger carnage

Victims of a <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/spanish-police-shoots-five-suspects-dead-after-barcelona-killings-19176">double vehicle attack in Spain</a> that left 14 people dead and around 100 injured were from at least 34 different countries, Spain&#39;s civil protection agency said&nbsp;Friday.

The agency tweeted that among the dead and injured in Barcelona, a city hugely popular with tourists worldwide, and the seaside resort of Cambrils were nationals from France, Pakistan, Spain, the Netherlands, China, Venezuela, Mauritania, Australia and Britain.

Authorities said the victims were from, among others, France, Pakistan, Spain, the Netherlands, China, Venezuela, Mauritania, Australia, and Britain

Victims of a double vehicle attack in Spain that left 14 people dead and around 100 injured were from at least 34 different countries, Spain's civil protection agency said Friday. The agency tweeted that among the dead and injured in Barcelona, a city hugely popular with tourists worldwide, and the seaside resort of Cambrils were nationals from France, Pakistan, Spain, the Netherlands, China, Venezuela, Mauritania, Australia and Britain.

At least 34 nationalities among Spain attack victims: Authorities

The Spanish National Police released photos of a 28-year-old man they have arrested in connection with the<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/dozens-injured-after-van-crashes-into-pedestrians-in-barcelona-19141"> van attack in Barcelona </a>which left at least 13 people dead and around 100 injured.

The man, identified by the police as&nbsp;Driss Oukabir, is Moroccon and he is alleged to&nbsp;have rented the van used in the attack.

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A handout picture downloaded on August 17, 2017 on Moroccan Driss Oukabir&#39;s Facebook account shows himself posing. (AFP)
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The driver of the van that mowed into a packed street in Barcelona is still on the run, Spanish police said.

 
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/z2swNCm8x-E" width="560"></iframe> 
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Police have arrested a man in connection with the attack in Spain's Barcelona on Thursday

The Spanish National Police released photos of a 28-year-old man they have arrested in connection with the van attack in Barcelona which left at least 13 people dead and around 100 injured. The man, identified by the police as Driss Oukabir, is Moroccon and he is alleged to have rented the van used in the attack. A handout picture downloaded on August 17, 2017 on Moroccan Driss Oukabir's Facebook account shows himself posing. (AFP) × The driver of the van that mowed into a packed street in Barcelona is still on the run, Spanish police said.

Barcelona attack: Who is Driss Oukabir?

Suspects in Spain&#39;s deadly twin terror attacks were preparing an even bigger assault that was foiled as events unfolded, police said Friday as the death toll rose to 14 with over 100 injured.&nbsp;

Officers also said the driver of the white van which mowed down tourists in the packed centre of Barcelona Thursday evening may have been among suspects killed in the hours since the mayhem started.

Police said they killed five &quot;suspected terrorists&quot; during the night and arrested three others as Spain reeled from the double tragedy in Barcelona and in Cambrils, some 120 kilometres (75 miles) south.

In a poignant moment Friday, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, King Felipe VI and the president of Catalonia -- where both attacks took place -- held a minute of silence in Barcelona. It was followed by applause and shouts of &quot;not afraid&quot;.

In what has been a fast-moving investigation, police were quick to connect the two attacks, and at a briefing Friday afternoon revealed the suspects had apparently been planning something bigger.

&quot;They were preparing one or several attacks in Barcelona and an explosion in Alcanar stopped this as they no longer had the material they needed to commit attacks of an even bigger scope,&quot; said Josep Lluis Trapero of Catalonia&#39;s police.

He was referring to a blast in a house in the town of Alcanar Wednesday evening, which police said killed one person. They said it was caused by an attempt to make explosive devices.

Trapero said that after this, the suspects -- who formed part of a cell -- allegedly went on to commit &quot;more rudimentary&quot; attacks. These involved the vehicles ploughing into pedestrians in Barcelona and Cambrils.&nbsp;

The Cambril suspects had an axe and knives in the car as well as fake explosive belts stuck to their bodies, said police.

The police chief added that the driver of the van in Barcelona could be among the five suspects shot dead by security forces in Cambrils. But while some evidence indicated this, there was no conclusive proof.

Organised &#39;cell&#39; 
Both the Spanish attacks followed the same modus operandi.

Drivers deliberately targeted pedestrians with their vehicles, just the latest in a series of such assaults in Europe, where cars and vans have been used to lethal effect.

Javier Zaragoza, a prosecutor advising the attorney general in terrorism matters, told AFP the attacks were most likely the work of an organised &quot;cell&quot;.

Otso Iho of Jane&#39;s Terrorism and Insurgency Centre added there appeared to be &quot;a much higher level of coordination than has been typically present in previous attacks&quot;.

As world leaders united in condemning the violence, the Islamic State group propaganda agency Amaq claimed that one of its &quot;soldiers&quot; had carried out the rampage in Barcelona.

It is believed to be the first time IS has claimed an attack in Spain.

Relatives separated 
In the Barcelona incident, a white van sped down the popular Las Ramblas avenue packed full of tourists Thursday afternoon, knocking people down and killing 13 in a scene of chaos and horror.

The driver left the vehicle on the busy boulevard and fled on foot.

Witnesses described how the van pushed through the crowd, leaving bodies strewn along the boulevard as people fled for their lives, screaming in panic.

&quot;We were on the city tour bus, we were 20 feet from the accident when it happened,&quot; said Alex Luque, a 19-year-old student from New York.

&quot;We heard the van and the impact with people and then we saw people running.&quot;

Then just eight hours later attackers struck again in the early hours of Friday.

This time, the attack was in the seaside resort of Cambrils where an Audi A3 car rammed into pedestrians, injuring six civilians and a police officer. One of the civilians later died.

The police shot dead the five attackers. The also said the had arrested four suspects, including three Moroccans and a Spaniard.

There were at least 34 nationalities among the dead and injured, from countries including Algeria, Australia, China, France, Ireland, Peru and Venezuela, according to Spain&#39;s civil protection agency.

At least two Italians were among the dead, said officials in Rome. At least one American was killed, according to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Belgium said one of its nationals had also died.

Europe&#39;s deadliest attack 
Spain, the world&#39;s third most popular tourism destination, had until now been spared in the recent wave of extremist attacks that have rocked nearby France, Belgium and Germany.

It had even seen a surge in tourists as visitors fled other restive sunshine destinations like Tunisia and Egypt.

But it is nevertheless no stranger to jihadist attacks.

In March 2004, it was hit by what is still Europe&#39;s deadliest, when bombs on commuter trains in Madrid killed 191 people in an attack claimed by Al Qaeda-inspired extremists.

Spain has also had to deal with a decades-long campaign of violence waged by Basque separatist group ETA, which only declared a ceasefire in 2011.

Police said Thursday that one of the suspects arrested in the Barcelona attack was a Spaniard born in Melilla, a Spanish territory in North Africa. Another suspect was a Moroccan named as Driss Oukabir.

It is thought the suspects had wanted to use explosives

Suspects in Spain's deadly twin terror attacks were preparing an even bigger assault that was foiled as events unfolded, police said Friday as the death toll rose to 14 with over 100 injured. Officers also said the driver of the white van which mowed down tourists in the packed centre of Barcelona Thursday evening may have been among suspects killed in the hours since the mayhem started. Police said they killed five "suspected terrorists" during the night and arrested three others as Spain reeled from the double tragedy in Barcelona and in Cambrils, some 120 kilometres (75 miles) south. In a poignant moment Friday, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, King Felipe VI and the president of Catalonia -- where both attacks took place -- held a minute of silence in Barcelona. It was followed by applause and shouts of "not afraid". In what has been a fast-moving investigation, police were quick to connect the two attacks, and at a briefing Friday afternoon revealed the suspects had apparently been planning something bigger. "They were preparing one or several attacks in Barcelona and an explosion in Alcanar stopped this as they no longer had the material they needed to commit attacks of an even bigger scope," said Josep Lluis Trapero of Catalonia's police. He was referring to a blast in a house in the town of Alcanar Wednesday evening, which police said killed one person. They said it was caused by an attempt to make explosive devices. Trapero said that after this, the suspects -- who formed part of a cell -- allegedly went on to commit "more rudimentary" attacks. These involved the vehicles ploughing into pedestrians in Barcelona and Cambrils. The Cambril suspects had an axe and knives in the car as well as fake explosive belts stuck to their bodies, said police. The police chief added that the driver of the van in Barcelona could be among the five suspects shot dead by security forces in Cambrils. But while some evidence indicated this, there was no conclusive proof. Organised 'cell' Both the Spanish attacks followed the same modus operandi. Drivers deliberately targeted pedestrians with their vehicles, just the latest in a series of such assaults in Europe, where cars and vans have been used to lethal effect. Javier Zaragoza, a prosecutor advising the attorney general in terrorism matters, told AFP the attacks were most likely the work of an organised "cell". Otso Iho of Jane's Terrorism and Insurgency Centre added there appeared to be "a much higher level of coordination than has been typically present in previous attacks". As world leaders united in condemning the violence, the Islamic State group propaganda agency Amaq claimed that one of its "soldiers" had carried out the rampage in Barcelona. It is believed to be the first time IS has claimed an attack in Spain. Relatives separated In the Barcelona incident, a white van sped down the popular Las Ramblas avenue packed full of tourists Thursday afternoon, knocking people down and killing 13 in a scene of chaos and horror. The driver left the vehicle on the busy boulevard and fled on foot. Witnesses described how the van pushed through the crowd, leaving bodies strewn along the boulevard as people fled for their lives, screaming in panic. "We were on the city tour bus, we were 20 feet from the accident when it happened," said Alex Luque, a 19-year-old student from New York. "We heard the van and the impact with people and then we saw people running." Then just eight hours later attackers struck again in the early hours of Friday. This time, the attack was in the seaside resort of Cambrils where an Audi A3 car rammed into pedestrians, injuring six civilians and a police officer. One of the civilians later died. The police shot dead the five attackers. The also said the had arrested four suspects, including three Moroccans and a Spaniard. There were at least 34 nationalities among the dead and injured, from countries including Algeria, Australia, China, France, Ireland, Peru and Venezuela, according to Spain's civil protection agency. At least two Italians were among the dead, said officials in Rome. At least one American was killed, according to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Belgium said one of its nationals had also died. Europe's deadliest attack Spain, the world's third most popular tourism destination, had until now been spared in the recent wave of extremist attacks that have rocked nearby France, Belgium and Germany. It had even seen a surge in tourists as visitors fled other restive sunshine destinations like Tunisia and Egypt. But it is nevertheless no stranger to jihadist attacks. In March 2004, it was hit by what is still Europe's deadliest, when bombs on commuter trains in Madrid killed 191 people in an attack claimed by Al Qaeda-inspired extremists. Spain has also had to deal with a decades-long campaign of violence waged by Basque separatist group ETA, which only declared a ceasefire in 2011. Police said Thursday that one of the suspects arrested in the Barcelona attack was a Spaniard born in Melilla, a Spanish territory in North Africa. Another suspect was a Moroccan named as Driss Oukabir.

Spain suspects planned bigger attack, say police

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Barcelona attacker shot dead by Spanish police

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Spain suspects planned bigger attack, say police