Tourists warned of terror threat in Spain
Ferry Online Travel News 03/08/2009
The Foreign Office has stepped up its warning to UK holidaymakers headed to Spain this summer.
Visitors are being advised that they may be the target of future attacks, which so far have targeted Spanish police. The most recent bomb blast exploded at Palmanova, the popular Majorcan, killing two police officials.
A second, unexploded bomb was discovered under a vehicle belonging to the civil guard, leading to the evacuation of nearby hotels.
One day earlier, a bomb blast at a police headquarters in northern Spain injured 46 people.
The travel advice posted by the FCO warns of a "high threat from terrorism" in Spain, noting that tourists could also be targets.
Officials on Majorca closed the Palma airport and all seaports for several hours following the blast, in an effort to stop the terrorists from escaping the island. Widespread disruption was caused to the travel plans of thousands of holidaymakers.
According to Thomson, it had four flights bound for Majorca when the airport was shut down. The travel operator noted that two of the flights returned to the UK – to Norwich and Gatwick – and the other two were diverted to airports on nearby islands.
A number of cruise ship calls were affected by the closure as were around 300 flights.
It is thought that the Basque separatist group ETA was behind the blast, which occurred at one of the most popular resort areas on the island during the busiest time of the summer season.
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