2004 Madrid train bombings ( also known in Spain as 11-M ) were nearly simultaneous , coordinated bombings against the Cercanías commuter train system of Madrid , Spain , on the morning of 11 March 2004 – three days before Spain 's general elections . The explosions killed 193 people and injured around 2,000 . The bombings constituted the deadliest terrorist attack carried out in the history of Spain and the deadliest in Europe since the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie , Scotland . The official investigation by the Spanish judiciary found that the attacks were directed by an al-Qaeda terrorist cell , although no direct al-Qaeda participation has been established . Although they had no role in the planning or implementation , the Spanish miners who sold the explosives to the terrorists were also arrested
Pan Am Flight 103
Pan Am Flight 103
2004 Madrid train bombings