A suspected car bomb exploded in a car park in central Madrid late Friday, slightly injuring 14 people close to a spot where King Juan Carlos had attended a military parade earlier in the day, officials said. Madrid`s mayor, Jose Maria Alvarez del Manzano, declined to say whether he believed the explosion was the work of Basque separatist group ETA which often carries out car bombings as part of its violent campaign for Basque independence.
But police officers at the scene said the blast had the hallmarks of an ETA attack.
The explosion in the underground car park in the Plaza de Colon square blew a hole through one of the floors, sending the car plunging to the floor below and damaging nearly 70 other vehicles, officials said early Saturday. The vehicle believed to have carried the explosives was taken to the car park on Friday evening by a tow truck after it was parked irregularly in a nearby street, officials said.
Bureau Report