Abouyaaqoub confirmed as van driver

Younes Abouyaaqoub was the driver of the van on La Rambla on Thursday evening. That is what the Catalan home affairs minister, Joaquim Forn, confirmed in an interview this Monday morning. He is due to speak at a press conference at noon, where he will give more details on the investigation. However, he did say that the main hypothesis is that there was only one person in the van on Thursday and he believes it was Abouyaaqoub, as some media have been speculating over the past few days.

According to Forn, the investigators have no evidence to indicate that the fugitive Abouyaaqoub has left the area, but he said they are working with all hypotheses. “Not only is he sought in Catalonia, but also in all European countries,” said the minister. Although he claimed that the terrorist cell is thought to be formed by no more than 12 people, he did not rule out “ramifications” with possible collaborators.