MADRID (Reuters) – Spanish voters swept the center-right government from power on Sunday in a spectacular general election upset over last week’s suspected al Qaeda attack in Madrid.
The ruling Popular Party (PP) conceded defeat to Socialist leader Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who will take over from outgoing Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, a staunch supporter of the U.S.-led war in Iraq that most Spaniards opposed.
“My most immediate priority is to beat all forms of terrorism,” said Zapatero, asking for a minute’s silence in honor of the 200 people killed in the bombings on four packed commuter trains.
Voters, many wearing the black ribbon symbols of national grief since Thursday’s attack, turned out in large numbers amid an angry debate over who was behind the train bombings — Osama bin Laden (news – web sites)’s al Qaeda or Basque separatists.
Analysts had warned that the PP, which had been opinion poll favorite, could be hit if voters believed a purported fresh al Qaeda claim that the group had mounted its first attack in Europe and in reprisal for Spain’s support for the Iraq war.
“PAID THE PRICE”
“The government has paid the price for its involvement in the war in Iraq, for Aznar’s relationship with (U.S. President George) W. Bush and (British Prime Minister) Tony Blair (news – web sites). The vote has been a reaction to this,” said Carlos Berzosa, rector of Madrid’s Complutense University.
Official results showed the Socialists leading the PP by 42.7 percent to 37.7 percent with 96 percent of votes counted.
This would give the Socialists 164 seats in parliament compared with the PP’s 148, but short of an absolute majority of 176.
Some Spaniards were vitriolic in accusing Aznar of “manipulating” public opinion by spending three days blaming the bombings on the Basque separatist group ETA, despite its denials.
Aznar, retiring as prime minister and hailing a solid economy and greater clout for a country restored to the international mainstream three decades after Franco’s dictatorship ended, had taken a tough line against ETA.
Protesters shouted “Liar” and “Get our troops out of Iraq” at the PP’s leading candidate Mariano Rajoy when he voted.
The Socialists have pledged to withdraw Spain’s 1,300 troops from Iraq if the U.N. does not take control by June 30 when Washington plans to hand power back to Iraqis. Opinion polls showed as many as 90 percent of Spaniards opposed the Iraq war.
In a high turnout, voters said they wanted to display unity for democracy after the worst guerilla attack in Europe since the 1988 Lockerbie bombing (news – web sites) of a U.S. airliner killed 270 people.
Just hours before polling began, officials said a purported al Qaeda video had been found in a waste bin on the outskirts of Madrid and that three Moroccans and two Indians had been arrested in connection with the attack.
Interior Minister Angel Acebes told a news conference in the early hours a purported spokesman for al Qaeda had claimed responsibility for the bombings on the video.
Morocco identified its three detained citizens as Jamal Zougam, 30, an office worker, mechanic Mohamed Bekkali, 31, and Mohamed Chaoui, 34, a factory worker.
On the tape, a man speaking in Moroccan-accented Arabic said al Qaeda had retaliated for Spain’s support for Washington.
“BLOOD WILL FLOW”
“If you don’t stop your injustices, more blood will flow and these attacks are very little compared with what may happen with what you call terrorism,” he said, according to a transcript in Spanish from the Interior Ministry. The tape was not released.
The man, who said he was speaking for Abu Dujan al Afgani whom he described as military spokesman of al Qaeda in Europe, referred to Iraq and Afghanistan (news – web sites) where Spain has troops.
The caller noted the March 11 blasts occurred exactly two and a half years after the September 11 attacks on the United States.
A purported al Qaeda letter on Thursday also claimed the group was responsible for the 10 simultaneous bombings on the crowded trains.
ETA issued a second statement, made public on Sunday, denying any role. The size of the attack would be unprecedented in the group’s three-decade armed campaign for independence.
Germany called on Sunday for an urgent meeting of European Union (news – web sites) security chiefs as possible al Qaeda involvement in the Madrid bombings triggered alarm bells across the world.
From Paris to Warsaw, governments across Europe tightened security at borders, railways and airports. (Additional reporting by Madrid bureau, Gilles Trequesser in Rabat and Peter Graff in London)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=564&ncid=564&e=1&u=/nm/20040314/ts_nm/spain_explosions_dc_96
The sad thing about this is it that it will be Europe’s Beirut or Somalia. Once the terrorists know that terrorism achieves their objectives then they’ll be many times more likely to use it. Just thank God that the US is taking the fight to the terrorists, if we don’t then no one will. If the Spain people truly believe that Al-Qaeda targets them just because they went with the US into Iraq, then why did Al-Qaeda attack the US BEFORE we even went into Iraq.
Furthermore, whith this ‘political victory’ by AQ they will be enboldened to make more attacks in attempt to effect internal politics. More blood will flow because the Spanish population does not wish to accept the fact that AQ is their enemy, not their current PM or the U.S..
Keep in mind that our elections in November are just around the corner.
I have to suppose AQ will use the Spanish political turnover to its advantage; it will cease attacks on Spain, in order to make the whining populace believe they have averted further destruction by aquiescence to terrorists. They (AQ) will then play the same game with other states until they have relieved themselves of pressure except from the West. Then they can put all their pressure on the Western Allies, in hopes of achieving social chaos and turmoil sufficient to topple western political power to those who are timid, withdrawing and weak. At that point, they will use their considerable assets (ships, chemicals, explosives, etc) to inflict crippling blows against western ports and cities, hoping for total social and financial collapse of systems capable of opposition to their activities.
At that point, the weak nations who have stood off from the fight will be less than fresh meat on a dogs plate, with their resources untrained, their systems insufficient for early detection and their own systems ripe for chaotic destruction.
A large amount of the so-called “spam” eating up bandwidth, as well as a large amount of the virii eating into the hightech fabric of western commerce originates in terror groups and their fellow travelers. After all, the complete collapse of the internet would mean nothing to them compared to what it would mean to the western world. The entire financial world is suspended in cyberspace on any given day.
The stupidly ignorant part of that particular attack is that it could be totally defeated by everyone having an up to date AV program, and a firewall properly configured would top off the defense. Not likely to happen, until/unless all the ISP’s servers would refuse access to any computer that did not have such basic safeguards. Which is not a bad idea at all, by the way………
He who timidly backs away from criminals is vainly hoping the dogs will go elsewhere, and perhaps eat him last.