Spanish Civil War combatants found dead in mass graves 80 years on
“It’s impossible to understand how in 2017, some 80 years after that disgrace, hundreds of our people are still missing,” says Catalan foreign affairs minister
It’s been more than 80 years since the Spanish Civil War tore the country apart, and 40 since dictator Francisco Franco’s rule made way for democracy. Yet, some wounds remain open, and more than 100,000 people are still missing in Spain, according to the United Nations (UN). In Catalonia alone, the number is at least 4,000.
However, several corpses were found on Friday, when mass graves were opened in the Catalan towns of Vilanova de Meià and Prats de Lluçanès. At least three of the bodies are believed to be those of three soldiers who fought for the left-wing Republican side in the late 1930s, defending the Spanish government after a failed coup attempt by right-wing Nationalist insurgents.