BRUSSELS - European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said Friday that the March 11 Madrid bombings were an attack "on all Europeans," and vowed to pursue a relentless fight against terrorism.
In a written declaration on the first anniversary of the Spanish attacks, he paid tribute to the victims and expressed "solidarity and compassion with those who still bear the mental and physical scars of that day."
"The 11 March attack against Spanish and other citizens was an attack against all European citizens, an attack against the very principles on which the EU is founded," he said.
"The Madrid events of last year made it clear that a terrorist attack on any part of the EU affects the EU in its entirety; as was shown by the response of the EU in its entirety."
He cited figures showing that eight out of 10 European citizens fear terrorism, and even more think the EU can help in the fight.
The EU has pushed terror up its political agenda, notably creating an anti-terror coordinator in the aftermath of the Madrid bombings which killed 191 people and left some 1,900 people injured.
But Barroso underlined that human rights must be respected in clamping down on terrorism.
"We will fight terrorism by the law and within the law.... In the fight against terrorism, we must uphold those very same principles we are so adamant to defend," he said.
"The EU will continue its relentless fight against terrorism. It is also a fight to preserve and uphold our most fundamental and cherished values and freedoms. We owe it to the victims of terrorism," he said.
03/11/2005 13:07 GMT