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Spain royals to return to flood epicentre after chaotic visit

King Felipe and Queen Letizia will travel to the eastern Valencia region, which has suffered 222 deaths

Published: Tue 12 Nov 2024, 5:42 PM

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  • AFP

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Queen Letizia (C) and King Felipe VI of Spain react as angry residents heckle them during their visit to Paiporta in the region of Valencia, eastern Spain, on November 3, 2024, in the aftermath of devastating deadly floods. — AFP

Queen Letizia (C) and King Felipe VI of Spain react as angry residents heckle them during their visit to Paiporta in the region of Valencia, eastern Spain, on November 3, 2024, in the aftermath of devastating deadly floods. — AFP

Spain's king and queen will next week visit the epicentre of the country's catastrophic floods where survivors heckled and hurled mud at them during their last trip, palace sources said on Tuesday.

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia will travel "early next week" to the eastern Valencia region, which has suffered almost all the destruction and 222 deaths, palace sources told AFP.

Furious residents chanting "murderers" in the ruined Valencia region town of Paiporta pelted the couple and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez with projectiles and mud on November 3.

While Sanchez and the Valencia region's leader Carlos Mazon were swiftly escorted away, the royals braved the chaos to speak with flood victims.

They have promised to travel to the town of Chiva where their planned visit on the same day was cancelled.

Felipe is due to return to the Valencia region on Tuesday to meet some of the thousands of soldiers taking part in the relief work following the October 29 disaster.

The unrest in Paiporta expressed widespread anger at political leaders for their perceived failure to adequately prepare for and respond to Spain's worst floods in a generation.



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