July 16, 2020 at 6:33 AM EDT
Spain holds state memorial ceremony for coronavirus victims amid concerns over new outbreaks
Spain held a state memorial ceremony on Thursday for the more than 28,000 people in the country who died of the novel coronavirus, amid concerns over new outbreaks in the country, including in Catalonia.
As one of Europe’s most affected nations, Spain had already declared 10 days of national mourning in May.
King Felipe VI led the memorial at the royal palace in the capital, Madrid, on Thursday, a ceremony that featured an orchestra and speeches.
Among the roughly 400 guests were relatives of victims as well as health workers. But the selection of participants was also perceived as a signal by the Spanish government that the pandemic should result in more international cooperation rather than unilateral national actions.
Among those present at the event were World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The European Union was criticized early in the pandemic for being ill-prepared and too slow in its efforts to mitigate the impact of the pandemic, but Spain and other countries hope that the European Union will play a key role in the economic recovery phase.
By Rick Noack
