Normality, yet anything but. A jogger passes armed police in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain, on Friday, August 18, 2017, the morning after a man ploughed into pedestrians, killing 13 people and injuring more than 100. Manu Fernandez/ AP
Normality, yet anything but. A jogger passes armed police in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain, on Friday, August 18, 2017, the morning after a man ploughed into pedestrians, killing 13 people and injuring more than 100. Manu Fernandez/ AP
Normality, yet anything but. A jogger passes armed police in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain, on Friday, August 18, 2017, the morning after a man ploughed into pedestrians, killing 13 people and injuring more than 100. Manu Fernandez/ AP
Normality, yet anything but. A jogger passes armed police in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain, on Friday, August 18, 2017, the morning after a man ploughed into pedestrians, killing 13 people and injurin

Barcelona: the morning after


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In Barcelona's old town, dozens of stunned tourists dressed in shorts and t-shirts stood behind security tape in the early hours, witnesses to the shocking attack on the city's famous boulevard of Las Ramblas.

Thirteen people were killed and more than 100 injured when a white van sped into the historic promenade, which was packed with tourists, mowing them down and unleashing carnage and chaos.

Close to the statue of Christopher Columbus, which depicts the explorer pointing out to sea, a distressed Scottish couple in their 60s stood by the security cordon blocking off the street. They had seen all the horror of Thursday night.

"We were sitting on the balcony of the hotel. We saw everything... the car... the panic everywhere," said the man, who did not want to be named. adding that they now could not get back to their hotel.

"The police, they arrived in two minutes, they were very good," the woman said, staring blankly ahead. "We had to talk with them."

As the city was bathed in sunshine hours earlier, Barcelona was shaken by the first attack on Spanish soil claimed by ISIL.

Its target was the crowd enjoying the summer afternoon, browsing stalls selling flowers and souvenirs along the central pathway of Las Ramblas, an avenue that stretches more than a kilometre towards the sea.

On a narrow street closeby, 45-year-old Benjamin, an industrial mechanic and  Barcelona resident, stood staring at the spot where the van hit a stall.

"Where we can see the forensic police working, in their white suits, that's where the van ran up against a kiosk," he said.

In the city of 1.6 million people -- where nine million tourists come to stay every year -- several cruise ships were also waiting as passengers tried to return to the pier.

The tragedy took the city by surprise: FC Barcelona was digesting a defeat to Real Madrid, the Catalan government was in the middle of its protracted fight for an independence referendum and security staff were striking at the airport.

But the city which hosted the Olympics in 1992 soon rallied in solidarity with those caught up in the devastation. The strike was suspended, taxis offered rides free of charge and volunteers rushed to donate blood, according to local media.

Hotels close to Las Ramblas welcomed tourists, offering them shelter and blankets.

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Read more: Barcelona terror attack: Spain hunts driver who killed 13 after foiling second attack

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An eerie silence pervaded the centre of a city that would usually be bustling until the early hours at the height of the mid-August holidays.

"It's a strangely quiet atmosphere," said Remy Gredin, a 23-year-old student from Marseille, finishing dinner at one of the few restaurants open on the Rambla del Raval, a street that runs parallel to the main promenade."We are waiting to go back to the apartment we are renting on the Ramblas. The attack happened just below but we had left an hour before to visit the Park Guell,"

Beneath the lampposts, road sweepers in fluorescent vests rubbed shoulders with plain clothes policeman.

"It was a matter of time (before an attack in Spain) but we did not know if it would be in Madrid or here," said Juan Manuel Ruiz, a 43-year-old waiter from Barcelona. "From now on, it will not be the same, and we must not allow just anyone to come in: It is not a question of racism but of keeping order. You are given food, do not come and kill us."

However his colleague Marc de la Iglesia, 29, said "it makes no sense to be alarmed. There needs to be a message of unity, we must help the people who have suffered and ensure Barcelona's reputation is not too damaged."

A text message spread from phone to phone with a warning not to share photos of the attack. "That's what they (the attackers) want," it said.

The head of the separatist Catalan regional government Carles Puigdemont meanwhile said: "We will not let a minority put an end to our way of life, which has been forged over centuries. We are and we will always be peaceful and welcoming people."

Moon Music

Artist: Coldplay

Label: Parlophone/Atlantic

Number of tracks: 10

Rating: 3/5

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands

50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias

Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match

WWE World Heavyweight Championship AJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura

Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe

United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal

SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos

Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt

Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho

Singles match John Cena v Triple H

Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba

 

Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Rating: 2/5
 

Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:

1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition

Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog

Name: Atheja Ali Busaibah

Date of birth: 15 November, 1951

Favourite books: Ihsan Abdel Quddous books, such as “The Sun will Never Set”

Hobbies: Reading and writing poetry

The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Power: 510hp at 9,000rpm
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Price: From Dh801,800
FA CUP FINAL

Manchester City 6
(D Silva 26', Sterling 38', 81', 87', De Bruyne 61', Jesus 68')

Watford 0

Man of the match: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

NEW ARRIVALS

Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m 

Chris%20Jordan%20on%20Sanchit
%3Cp%3EChris%20Jordan%20insists%20Sanchit%20Sharma%20will%20make%20an%20impact%20on%20the%20ILT20%2C%20despite%20him%20starting%20the%20campaign%20on%20Gulf%20Giants'%20bench.%3Cbr%3EThe%20young%20UAE%20seamer%20was%20an%20instant%20success%20for%20the%20side%20last%20season%2C%20and%20remained%20part%20of%20the%20XI%20as%20they%20claimed%20the%20title.%3Cbr%3EHe%20has%20yet%20to%20feature%20this%20term%20as%20the%20Giants%20have%20preferred%20Aayan%20Khan%20and%20Usman%20Khan%20as%20their%20two%20UAE%20players%20so%20far.%3Cbr%3EHowever%2C%20England%20quick%20Jordan%20is%20sure%20his%20young%20colleague%20will%20have%20a%20role%20to%20play%20at%20some%20point.%3Cbr%3E%22Me%20and%20Sanchit%20have%20a%20great%20relationship%20from%20last%20season%2C%22%20Jordan%20said.%3Cbr%3E%22Whenever%20I%20am%20working%20with%20more%20inexperienced%20guys%2C%20I%20take%20pleasure%20in%20sharing%20as%20much%20as%20possible.%3Cbr%3E%22I%20know%20what%20it%20was%20like%20when%20I%20was%20younger%20and%20learning%20off%20senior%20players.%3Cbr%3E%22Last%20season%20Sanchit%20kick-started%20our%20season%20in%20Abu%20Dhabi%20with%20a%20brilliant%20man-of-the-match%20performance.%3Cbr%3E%22Coming%20into%20this%20one%2C%20I%20have%20seen%20a%20lot%20of%20improvement.%20The%20focus%20he%20is%20showing%20will%20only%20stand%20him%20in%20good%20stead.%22%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Settlers

Director: Louis Theroux

Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz

Rating: 5/5

Brief scores:

Toss: Kerala Knights, opted to fielf

Pakhtoons 109-5 (10 ov)

Fletcher 32; Lamichhane 3-17

Kerala Knights 110-2 (7.5 ov)

Morgan 46 not out, Stirling 40

Porsche Macan T: The Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo 

Power: 265hp from 5,000-6,500rpm 

Torque: 400Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm 

Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto 

Speed: 0-100kph in 6.2sec 

Top speed: 232kph 

Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km 

On sale: May or June 

Price: From Dh259,900