MANILA, Philippines — Four Irish citizens of Filipino descent were among those who were injured when a van plowed into pedestrians in Barcelona, Spain, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Friday.
At least 13 people were killed and 100 were injured in what Spanish authorities called a terror attack in Barcelona's Las Ramblas district.
Joining the international community, the Philippines condemned the terrorist attack and expressed its condolences to the Spanish Government.
"The Philippines condemns in the strongest terms this disturbing act of terror perpetrated by extremists against innocent men, women and children in Barcelona," Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano said in a statement.''
READ: Barcelona van attack kills 13 in agonizing repeat for Europe
The Philippine Honorary Consul went to the hospital to check the four members of the Irish family of Filipino descent who were injured in the attack.
The DFA, however, did not release the names of the family members. Honorary Consul Jordi Puig Roches said that the mother and her daughter have been released from the hospital but the father and his son are still under observation.
The family is also being assisted by the Irish Honorary Consul in Barcelona.
The Philippine Embassy in Madrid and the Honorary Consulate in Barcelona are in touch with leaders of the Filipino community to make sure that the 20,000 other Filipino residents of Barcelona are safe.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also condemned the terrorist attack in Barcelona, Spain, and extended his condolences to the families of those killed.
His spokesman, Farhan Haq, said the secretary-general "wishes a speedy recovery to those injured and hopes that those responsible for this heinous violence will be swiftly brought to justice."
"The United Nations stands in solidarity with the Government of Spain in its fight against terrorism and violent extremism," the statement said. — Patricia Lourdes Viray with Associated Press