Spain continues to investigate causes of deadly Toledo train crash – Europe live

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  Morning opening: Spain mourns and investigates causes of train crash in Toledo

Morning opening: Spain mourns and investigates causes of train crash in Toledo

Jakub Krupa

Spain continues investigating Wednesday’s deadly train crash in Toledo province, which killed 69 people, and left many more injured.

An initial interim report by the independent body investigating the crash confirms the high-speed Ave train was travelling at between 160 and 200km/h when it collided with the stationary train ahead of it.

Despite a lot of attention on leaked recordings of conversations between the operations centre and drivers affected by a signalling failure in the Urda area, the full investigation is likely to take weeks if not months. The investigators were not able to speak to some of the key witnesses so far, the interim report said.

But, as our Spain correspondent Sam Jones notes in his analysis, the effect on Spain’s politics can be more imminent given next month’s parliamentary elections.

“The crash could sap Sánchez’s recently resurgent momentum and the issue of rail safety now threatens to overshadow his attempts to defend his record and remain in the Moncloa palace.”

Elsewhere, I will be keeping an eye on France and Italy, with more protests planned in both countries as populations continue to show their frustrations with the state of education, the cost of living and other issues.

French interior minister Laurent Nuñez warned of “a very high risk” of violent disorder this weekend, as he blamed “the radicalised far-left” and the Yellow Vest movement for urging more people to attend demonstrations with “quite radical” messages.

In Italy, “massive” students protests are expected in Rome, Milan, the student movement said.

I will bring you all the latest.

And later the attention will turn to Canada, as it continues discussing its new relationship with the EU at a summit in Montreal – whether through an “associate membership” or some other form of partnership. We will hear from Mark Carney and Ursula von der Leyen.

It’s Friday, 30 October 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.

Good morning.