Sexton killed in stabbing attack in church, investigation opened

A sexton was killed and several people injured including a priest in a stabbing attack on Wednesday evening in a church in Algeciras, southern Spain, which led to the opening of a terrorism investigation, authorities announced.

This “stabbing attack” occurred “shortly before 8 p.m.” in the church of San Isidro in Algeciras, the Interior Ministry said.

The man, who was killed outside the church, was “the sexton of Nuestra Señora de La Palma, a church which the attacker also entered” and which is a few minutes walk from San Isidro, detailed the ministry, adding that other people had been injured.

The suspect dressed in a djellaba according to witnesses

According to a police source, one of the injured is a seriously injured priest. Also according to this source, the assailant was dressed in a djellaba and “screamed something” at the time of the attack.

Local media, based on testimonies, indicate that he was armed with a machete with which he killed the sexton.

In a video released by the authorities, we see the assailant from behind, black pants and a black and white gray hoodie. Handcuffed, he walks in socks in a corridor, framed by two police officers.

Investigation for terrorism

“The facts are analyzed and investigated. It is not possible for the moment to determine the nature of the attack, ”assured the Ministry of the Interior. Contacted by AFP, the prosecution announced for its part that an investigation had been opened for “presumed acts of terrorism”. It will be conducted by a judge from the National Audience, the court in charge of terrorism cases.

Juanma Moreno, president of the Andalusia region, described the attack on Twitter as “terrible and unbearable”. “We murdered a sexton and injured at least one priest”, he denounced, while calling for “caution” while an “investigation is underway”. The leader of the Popular Party, the main formation of the right-wing opposition, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, said he was “dismayed by the attacks committed this evening in Algeciras”.

The last attacks in Spain date back to August 2017, when two attacks by a jihadist cell left 16 dead and 140 injured on the Ramblas avenue in Barcelona and in the seaside resort of Cambrils. They had been claimed by the Islamic State organization. The three survivors of this cell had been sentenced to terms of eight, 46 and 53 years in prison.

source site