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Spain Votes in Election After Attacks
 Spaniards voted Sunday in general elections thrown wide open by a reported al-Qaida claim that it staged deadly rail bombings last week to punish the government for supporting the U.S.-led war in Iraq. Protesters shouted "murderer" at the ruling party candidate as he cast his ballot.
| What were the protesters protesting? The election? Did they vote? And what'd the voters shout, in anything? |
Some voters also blamed the government for Spain's worst terror attack, saying President Jose Maria Aznar invited the attention of Osama bin Laden's terror group by allying Spain with Washington in the invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein. Fueling anger were suspicions that the government withheld information in the investigation to avoid political fallout from the Thursday bombings, which killed at least 200 people and wounded about 1,200. The government had initially blamed the Basque separatist group ETA. "I didn't intend to vote, but changed my mind," said Javi Martin, 30, who works for a TV station in Madrid. "And not because of the attacks, but because of the responsibility of the Popular Party. They gave out information drop by drop. It would have benefited them if it were ETA."
| My guess is that they got information drop by drop and handed it out as they got it. Cheeze, I hate spin... |
Evidence of al-Qaida involvement grew after the government announced finding a videotape in a trash can Saturday on which a man says the Islamic terror group was punishing Spain for its support of the Iraq war. An Arabic-speaking man called a Madrid TV station to say the tape was there, Interior Minister Angel Acebes said. Earlier in the day, three Moroccans and two Indians were arrested over the bombings, which killed 200 people and wounded 1,200. Spain's El Pais newspaper, citing the interior ministry, reported that the Moroccans are linked to Abu Dahdah, the jailed alleged leader of al-Qaida's Spanish cell. Authorities in Morocco said Sunday they could not confirm that. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sunday it is too early to say whether al-Qaida was behind the bombings. "It's just premature to make a judgment. I don't think we know enough, and the Spanish are very good at these kinds of investigations. And I'm sure they'll get to the bottom of it," Powell said. Before the attacks, polls gave ruling the Popular Party and its candidate, Mariano Rajoy, a 3-5 percentage point lead over the Socialists and their leader Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero in the race for the 350-seat Congress of Deputies. President Aznar is not seeking a third term; in the outgoing legislature, his party had 183 seats.
| Guess we'll know by this evening, won't we? |
In the videotape, the male speaker says: "We declare our responsibility for what happened in Madrid," according to a government translation of the statement delivered in Arabic. "It is a response to your collaboration with the criminals Bush and his allies."
Posted by: Fred 2004-03-14 |
