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Thursday, the US Embassy in Madrid was placed on high alert after receiving what is thought to be a mail bomb, only one day after a similar parcel was discovered at the Ukrainian Embassy and exploded in flames.
“We can confirm that a suspicious box was sent to the U.S. Embassy in Madrid, and we are aware of allegations that other suspicious parcels were addressed to other places in Spain,” the American embassy said in a statement.
“We appreciate the help of Spanish law enforcement in this situation.”
Spanish sources said that police exploded the suspicious package found at the US embassy early Thursday morning after cordoning off a large area surrounding the facility.
Authorities report that this is the third possibly lethal item recovered in Spain during the past two days.
A police cordon surrounds the US Embassy in Madrid after an envelope containing a possible explosive device was addressed to the embassy.
REUTERS
This is the parcel that was sent to the Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid on Wednesday, after a spate of similar occurrences around the nation.
via REUTERS
The parcel addressed to the Ukrainian ambassador to Spain was sent to the Ukrainian Embassy.
An employee who was handling it at the time of its abrupt ignition had minor injuries, according to officials.
This incident is being investigated by the National Court of Spain as a terrorist act.
The Spanish Defense Ministry, a European Union satellite facility based at the Torrejón de Ardoz air base outside Madrid, and an armaments factory in northern Spain that produces grenades delivered to Ukraine all received suspicious letters, according to the police.
The Spanish government is attempting to discover who sent the letters and whether they have any connection to the conflict in Ukraine.
Thursday, the Russian Embassy in Madrid issued a tweet condemning the letter bombs, stating that “any threat or terrorist assault, especially those aimed at diplomatic missions, is completely unacceptable.”
They also discovered a suspicious item at the main gate of the Spanish air force installation in Torrejon de Ardoz near Madrid.
AFP Images via Getty
In response to the occurrences, Ukrainian Overseas Minister Dmytro Kuleba ordered increased security at all of Ukraine’s foreign embassies and requested an immediate inquiry from his Spanish counterpart.
Rafael Pérez, the country’s Secretary of State for Security, stated that an early examination suggested the first five parcels were likely mailed from within Spain.
Police said that all but one of the mail explosives were neutralized.
Pérez stated that the sole intact explosive device discovered at the air base is being evaluated as part of the inquiry.
This package was intended to the head of the European Union Satellite Center, a geospatial intelligence organization inside the EU that monitors Ukraine.
The item delivered to the Defense Ministry was addressed to Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles, while the package sent to the armaments plant was directed to the business’s director, according to officials.
»Letter bomb was discovered at the US embassy in Madrid, the most recent target.«