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Firefighters and stretcher-bearers remove a body from the Rolando café. Archivo Regional de la Comunidad de Madrid. Fondo Martín Santos Yubero
ETA's First Massacre 50 Years Ago, Exhibited in Alicante

ETA's First Massacre 50 Years Ago, Exhibited in Alicante

The Memorial Centre for Victims of Terrorism inaugurates the exhibition to "keep the memory alive"

Adrián Mazón

Alicante

Miércoles, 29 de enero 2025, 14:25

On the 50th anniversary of ETA's first terrorist act, a powerful bomb reinforced with shrapnel exploded in the dining room of the Rolando café in Madrid on Friday, 13th September 1974, at 2:30 PM. Eleven people died that day, with two more victims succumbing later due to injuries, and over seventy were wounded.

The Memorial Centre for Victims of Terrorism has inaugurated the exhibition 'Rolando 2.15-2.45. 50 Years of ETA's First Massacre' in the hall of Lecture Building 2 at the University of Alicante to "keep the memory alive" of the "era of terror" experienced in Spain due to this armed group.

Stretcher-bearers and firefighters removing the injured from the Rolando café. VOLKHART MÜLLER/EFE/lafototeca.com

The exhibition is structured into 22 panels referencing different milestones of the attack and also recounts the stories of the 13 fatalities. It includes elements linked to the commando that carried out the mass crime.

One of the panels is dedicated "to the heroes," the individuals who risked their lives to assist the victims, including neighbours, employees of the affected establishments, firefighters, police officers, healthcare workers, and taxi drivers. Thanks to their swift actions, many lives were saved.

Debris clearing tasks after the attack. VOLKHART MÜLLER/EFE/lafototeca.com

Madrid, the capital of Spain, recorded the highest number of fatalities by the terrorist organisation, with the Rolando café attack - located on Correo Street, near Puerta del Sol - being the deadliest.

On that day, 13th September, eleven people died and over seventy were injured. Due to physical injuries, Gerardo García Pérez passed away on 29th September 1974, and Inspector Félix Ayuso Pinel, the only police officer on the list, died on 11th January 1977.

As detailed by the Memorial Centre for Victims of Terrorism, "it was the first indiscriminate attack in ETA's long history. However, as it did many times, the group killed and lied. Instead of claiming the crime, it blamed the far-right and the Franco regime. It did not acknowledge its responsibility until 2018."

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