In the presence of EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and the entire head of the European Union, Spain has said goodbye to its more than 28,400 coronavirus deaths. „This act cannot alleviate the pain,“ said King Felipe VI of Spain. today in front of around 400 guests on Armeria Square in front of the Royal Palace in Madrid.
Von der Leyen, Felipe, Queen Letizia, Crown Princess Leonor (14), Infanta Sofia (13), the Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and numerous other participants in the mourning ceremony put white roses to the sounds of Johannes Brahms („The Spiritual Song“) down on a votive flame in the middle of the square.
Appreciation of merit
With the government act, the government not only wanted to commemorate the dead and thank the health workers, but also to acknowledge the merits of the entire Spanish society in the „very difficult time“ of the pandemic and the strict „lock-down“.
In addition to von der Leyen, EU Council President Charles Michel and Parliament President David Sassoli also traveled from Brussels. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, were also among the participants who all wore masks.
