MADRID -- People in Madrid gathered for a Catholic mass, along with many political leaders and royalty from Europe Wednesday, to mourn the 190 victims of the train bombing that struck Madrid March 11. King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, French President Jacques Chriac and Prince Mulay of Morocco were among the leaders who attended the mass.
Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela, the archbishop of Madrid, celebrated the memorial mass and sent a message of support to the families of the victims.
"Great is the pain that has overwhelmed your lives and those of your families since that black day in which brutal terrorist violence, executed with unspeakable cruelty, cut down the lives of your most loved ones," he said.
The attendants sang hymns in remembrance of the victims and prayed for "the violent and the terrorists," urging them to "return to peaceful co-existence and never again attack the lives of anyone."
