THE news from Barcelona is simply shocking. Yet again a motor vehicle has been used as a weapon to strike terror into the hearts of the public.

Barcelona became the latest city to suffer from a terror attack aimed at disrupting the way of life of ordinary people. At the time of writing this column 13 people had died, a further 15 were critical and more than 100 were injured as a van deliberately swerved along Barcelona’s famous Las Ramblas area trying to injure as many people as possible.

This is the worst terrorist attack in Spain since the Madrid bombings in 2004. This is a major tourist centre and Catalan authorities have confirmed that the victims were from at least 24 different countries.

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News reports are still being updated as Catalan police and emergency services deal with the attack, closing down the area and searching for anyone who they believe could be involved in this terrorist atrocity. Although Daesh initially claimed responsibility for the attack, terrorism experts have warned that such claims should be treated with caution. A similar attack also took place in Cambrils, a seaside resort 68 miles south-west of Barcelona, yesterday morning as a car was driven into the public. The latest news on this attack is that the police shot dead five terrorist suspects.

This use of low-tech equipment, essentially a rented van, to carry out a terrorist attack mirrors similar atrocities in other cities such as Nice, Berlin and London. No longer are bombs and guns the tools of choice for terrorists when something as simple as a van (and knives in the case of London) can be used to spread fear on the streets.

My thoughts are with everyone in Barcelona and Cambrils, those who have been injured and with the families and friends of those who have been killed.

The international condemnation of the attack was swift, with world leaders quick to offer their condolences and support to the people of Barcelona. This included Donald Trump who seemed quicker to condemn terrorists in Barcelona than he was to condemn the Nazi terrorists in his own country.

Trump’s various comments on the Nazi rally in Charlottesville were appalling. As our First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made clear, “You cannot draw an equivalence between far-right Nazis, people who peddle hate and racism and bigotry, and those who protest against that kind of ideology”.

The sight of American Nazis openly displaying their hate and bile, without even having to hide behind their KKK hoods, highlights how emboldened they are just now. This mob arrived armed with shields, clubs and even automatic guns.

This wasn’t just a normal rally of people protesting about an issue, this was a hate-filled assembly of bigots, racists and Nazis wanting to openly spread their intolerant ideology, blaming anyone who is different from them for all the ills they perceive to have been inflicted upon them.

In contrast, the anti-fascist protesters were there to let everyone know that it’s not okay to have such intolerance on the streets in 21st-century America.

Brave people like civil rights activist Heather Heyer were amongst the protesters who knew that ignoring the rants of racists and Nazis won’t make them go away. Unfortunately, Heather lost her life standing up against these Nazis when one of them decided to drive his car at top speed into a crowd of anti-fascist protesters.

Most people recognised this as a terrorist attack on US soil, an act to drive fear and terror into those who oppose the intolerant and hate-filled philosophy of Nazis.

One small positive outcome from the events of Charlottesville has been the online campaign to identify all the Nazis who attended the rally. It seemed that taking off their hoods has now meant that their faces have been plastered all over social media with the consequence that some are now losing friends, being disowned by their families and even losing their jobs.

Trump’s attempts to claim that there were “very fine people” on both sides of the fascist/anti-fascist divide is nonsense and raises further concerns about Trump’s suitability as President. It also makes any state visit to the UK by Trump unthinkable. We should not be spending a single penny of taxpayers’ money to have Trump set foot in the UK. If he can’t see what’s wrong with fascists like the KKK and their Nazi supporters then he doesn’t deserve any official welcome.

There were also concerns over the delay in Theresa May condemning Trump’s comments. Why did it take her so long to make a statement when she was quick off the mark to complain about how long it would take to repair the Elizabeth Tower at Westminster? Of course, any prime minister who relies on buying the support of the DUP to remain in power may not be the best judge of character.