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Thousands of people have descended on Barcelona’s Las Ramblas chanting “I am not afraid”, in a show of unity and defiance following yesterday’s terror attacks.
Residents and tourists clapped and shouted “No tinc por” as they walked in sombre defiance down the historic street where attackers ploughed a van into crowds, killing at least 14 people.
Mourners laid flowers and lit candles in memory of the victims before Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and Spain's king Felipe held a minute’s silence in the nearby Plaça de Catalunya.
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Spontaneous applause rang out across the square after the silence, in a show of Catalan spirit and community.
The march began shortly after as the crowds made their way down the 1.2 km stretch of Las Ramblas that connects Plaça de Catalunya in the centre with the Christopher Columbus Monument at Port Vell.
"Those that live here can't believe it, because we live here, we walk here, this is our neighbourhood," Sebastiano Palumbo, 47, an Italian architect working in Barcelona, said. "I think the best thing would be to continue, every day, doing what do."
Barcelona AttackShow all 30 Police officers patrol on Las Ramblas following yesterday's terrorist attack, on August 18, 2017 in Barcelona, Spain. Thirteen people were killed and dozens injured when a van hit crowds in the Las Ramblas area of Barcelona on Thursday. Spanish police have also killed five suspected terrorists in the town of Cambrils to stop a second terrorist attack
Getty Images
Tourists and locals walk along Las Ramblas following yesterday's terrorist attack, on August 18, 2017 in Barcelona, Spain. Thirteen people were killed and dozens injured when a van hit crowds in the Las Ramblas area of Barcelona on Thursday. Spanish police have also killed five suspected terrorists in the town of Cambrils to stop a second terrorist attack.
Getty Images
Police officers patrol on Las Ramblas following yesterday's terrorist attack, on August 18, 2017 in Barcelona, Spain. Thirteen people were killed and dozens injured when a van hit crowds in the Las Ramblas area of Barcelona on Thursday. Spanish police have also killed five suspected terrorists in the town of Cambrils to stop a second terrorist attack.
Getty Images
People leave a fastfood with hands up as asked by policemen after a van ploughed into the crowd, killing two persons and injuring several others on the Rambla in Barcelona on August 17, 2017. A driver deliberately rammed a van into a crowd on Barcelona's most popular street on August 17, 2017 killing at least two people before fleeing to a nearby bar, police said. Officers in Spain's second-largest city said the ramming on Las Ramblas was a "terrorist attack" and a police source said one suspect had left the scene and was "holed up in a bar". The police source said they were hunting for a total of two suspects
AFP/Getty
Police officers tell members of the public to leave the scene in a street in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2017. Police in the northern Spanish city of Barcelona say a white van has jumped the sidewalk in the city's historic Las Ramblas district, injuring several people.
AP
Injured people react after a van crashed into pedestrians in Las Ramblas, downtown Barcelona, Spain, 17 August 2017. According to initial reports a van crashed into a crowd in Barcelona's famous Placa Catalunya square at Las Ramblas area injuring several. Local media report the van driver ran away, metro and train stations were closed. The number of people injured and the reasons behind the incident are not yet known. Official sources have not confirmed that the incident is a terrorist attack.
EPA
People move from the scene after a van crashed into pedestrians near the Las Ramblas avenue
Reuters
A policeman stands next to an ambulance after a van ploughed into the crowd, injuring several persons on the Rambla in Barcelona
AFP/Getty Images
Firefighters stands outside an evacuated mall after a van ploughed into the crowd, injuring several persons on the Rambla in Barcelona
AFP/Getty Images
Policemen stand next to vehicles in a cordoned off area after a van ploughed into the crowd, injuring several persons on the Rambla in Barcelona
AFP/Getty Images
Plain-clothes policemen phone as they walk past police cars in a cordoned off area after a van ploughed into the crowd, injuring several persons on the Rambla in Barcelona
AFP/Getty Images
A policemen and a medical staff member stand past police cars and an ambulance in a cordoned off area after a van ploughed into the crowd, injuring several persons on the Rambla in Barcelona
AFP/Getty Images
A person is stretched out of a mall by medical staff members in a cordoned off area after a van ploughed into the crowd, injuring several persons on the Rambla in Barcelona on August 17, 2017. Police in Barcelona said they were dealing with a "terrorist attack" after a vehicle ploughed into a crowd of pedestrians on the city's famous Las Ramblas boulevard on August 17, 2017. Police were clearing the area after the incident, which has left a number of people injured.
AFP/Getty Images
Children, some in tears, are escorted down a road in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2017. Police in Barcelona say a white van has mounted a sidewalk, struck several people in the city's Las Ramblas district.
AP
Mossos d'Esquadra Police officers and emergency service workers move an injured man, after a van crashes into pedestrians in Las Ramblas, downtown Barcelona, Spain, 17 August 2017. According to initial reports a van crashed into a crowd in Barcelona's famous Placa Catalunya square at Las Ramblas area injuring several. Local media report the van driver ran away, metro and train stations were closed. The number of people injured and the reasons behind the incident are not yet known. Official sources have not confirmed that the incident is a terrorist attack.
EPA
Mossos d'Esquadra Police officers attend injured people after a van crashed into pedestrians in Las Ramblas, downtown Barcelona, Spain, 17 August 2017. According to initial reports a van crashed into a crowd in Barcelona's famous Placa Catalunya square at Las Ramblas area injuring several. Local media report the van driver ran away, metro and train stations were closed. The number of people injured and the reasons behind the incident are not yet known. Official sources have not confirmed that the incident is a terrorist attack.
EPA
Injured people react after a van crashed into pedestrians in Las Ramblas, downtown Barcelona, Spain, 17 August 2017. According to initial reports a van crashed into a crowd in Barcelona's famous Placa Catalunya square at Las Ramblas area injuring several. Local media report the van driver ran away, metro and train stations were closed. The number of people injured and the reasons behind the incident are not yet known. Official sources have not confirmed that the incident is a terrorist attack.
EPA
A police officer cordon off a street in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2017. Police in the northern Spanish city of Barcelona say a white van has jumped the sidewalk in the city's historic Las Ramblas district, injuring several people.
AP
Liz Castro, who has lived in the city for 30 years and who attended the march, said Catalans would never be cowed by fear.
“Tomorrow we will mourn the victims and care for the wounded, and then we will return to our streets and go to work and play and live,” she wrote on Twitter .
“You can't have our city. The day we succumb to fear is the day you win. And that's not going to happen. We will not be afraid.”
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