Warned by counter-terrorism officials that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria [ISIS] could hit soft targets in Europe, terrorists struck today in one of Europe’s most popular tourist destinations, Las Ramblas pedestrian mall in Barcelona, Catalonia Spain. Repeating the same MO as Nice, where ISIS terrorists rammed a semi-truck July 14, 2016 into a popular pedestrian area of Nice, killing 87, injuring 458, ISIS rammed a van into pedestrians on Las Ramblas, killing at least 13, injuring 80, at least 15 critically. Watching the caliphate collapse in Mosul, Iraq July 9, ISIS now battles for its life in Raqqa, Syria, as Syrian Democratic Forces [SDF], backed by the United States and led by the Kurds and Arab fighters advance on Raqqa, ISIS’s Syrian home base. Lashing out in Barcelona, ISIS seeks relevance after the world watches its illegitimate caliphate driven into oblivion.
While Catalan authorities have not confirmed yet the ISIS attack, it’s identical, though on a smaller scale from the one in Nice July 24, 2016. ISIS has taken to more simple methods like car-truck-ramming, since obtaining C-4 [plastic type] or TAPT [Triacetone Triperoxide] explosives have been more difficult to obtain. “We have arrested one man and we are treating his as a terrorist,” said Catalan police, hunting for at least one more terrorist believed holed up in a Barcelona bar. Taxi driver Oscar Cano told TV3 he watched a van pull onto the Las Ramblas pedestrian mall at high speed, swerving side-to-side, mowing down pedestrians. Nowhere in Europe is more vulnerable to a terror attack than the popular Las Ramblas, a meeting place for youth from all over Europe. Hitting Las Ramblas during the height of tourist season shows the ruthless nature of ISIS-inspired terror attacks.
Hitting Las Ramblas was ISIS’s last-ditch attempt at relevance before the caliphate falls in Raqqa. Reports from Raqqa show starved-and-emaciated ISIS soldiers fleeing the battlefield, as SDF forces bear down on ISIS-held positions. “The United States condemns the terror attack in Barcelona, Spain, and will do whatever is necessary to help. Be tough & strong, we love you!” tweeted President Donald Trump, who’s been critical of European Union’s liberal immigration policies leaving the continent infiltrated with terrorists. “Terrorists around the world should know that the United State and our allies are resolved to find you and bring you to justice,” said Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Trump and Tillerson know that that the best defense is a good offense, currently going in Raqqa. When ISIS is driven from Syria, over the objections of Turkish President Recept Tayyip Erdogan, the world will be a little safer.
Every battlefield success degrades the ISIS gang of misanthropes, scattering their command-and-control, driving the loosely-help band of criminals from their save havens. Hitting Barcelona or other spots in Europe or the U.K. make PR statements about the relevance of the terror group. “All my thoughts and solidarity from France for the victims of this tragic attack in Barcelona. We will remain united and determined,” said French President Emanuel Macron. Macron backed the seven-year-old Saudi proxy war against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, leaving over 300,000 dead, more that 12 million refugees flooding into the Mideast and Europe. Macron knows the horrors of ISIS terrorists striking Paris Nov. 13, 2015, killing 137, injuring 368. EU officials need to acknowledge that backing the Saudi proxy war in Syria for seven years flooded the Continent with potential terrorists.
Sending his condolences to Barcelona, 62-year-old Luxemburg-based European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker called the attacks “cowardly.” “The cowardly attack was deliberately targeted those enjoying life and sharing time with family and friends. We will never be cowed by such barbarism,” said Juncker. Like Macron, Juncker backed the seven-year-old Saudi proxy war creating the worst refugee and humanitarian crisis since WW II. While he regrets the attacks in the EU, his policies at the European Commission and in the European Parliament expose Europe to a rising tide of terrorist-refugees. More recent attacks at the Westminster Bridge in London March 22, killing 6, injuring 49, shows the vulnerability of EU and U.K. to ISIS terrorism. When ISIS struck May 22 at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, 23 youth lost their lives with more than 250 injuries.
Today’s ISIS terror attack in Barcelona shows that the failing terror group still has the capacity to lash out at soft-targets while its caliphate faces destruction in Raqqa. Once the U.S.-backed SDF ejects ISIS from Raqqa, terror attacks in Europe and elsewhere will start slowing down. Once driven from Raqqa, ISIS, like al-Qaeda, will be forced to wage a guerrilla war but won’t have the same command-in-control needed to strike key spots in Europe and around the globe. Instead of backing the seven-year-old Saudi proxy causing havoc, the EU should work with the U.S. and Russia to assure stability in Syria, including letting al-Assad stay in power. No matter what the terror alert in Europe, soft targets remain vulnerable to ISIS attacks, especially as the group loses its grip in Raqqa. EU officials need to beef up security around popular spots on the continent and in the U.K.
