Admiral, Kin of Columbus, Dies in Attack by Terrorists
A vice admiral in the Spanish navy who was a direct descendant of Christopher Columbus was killed along with his driver today in an attack by suspected Basque terrorists, police said.
A police spokesman said witnesses saw two unidentified men and a woman throw a grenade into the car of Vice Adm. Cristobal Colon y Carvajal, then open fire with submachine guns.
The attack occurred in the Madrid neighborhood of del Viso, the spokesman said. The attackers reportedly fled by car on a highway leading south from the capital.
Police identified Colon y Carvajal as a direct descendant of Columbus and a former commander of the Spanish navy training ship Juan Sebastian Elcano. His slain driver was identified as Manuel Trigo Munoz.
A second, unidentified man accompanying Colon y Carvajal was seriously wounded in the attack, they said.
Police said the Basque separatist organization ETA was believed involved. Last year ETA, which means Basque Land and Liberty in the Basque language, claimed responsibility for the deaths of 37 people, most of them police or military officers.
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