Man 'beats up seven monks' in rural monastery rampage while declaring himself Jesus

A brutal over the weekend has left several people injured, after an assailant reportedly broke in and declared "I am Jesus Christ and I am going to kill the monks." Following a lengthy search of the countryside around Valencia, police have arrested a man on suspicion of carrying out the vicious attack, which left a 76-year-old man fighting for his life.

Initial reports on Saturday indicated that a had been killed during the violent rampage, during which the assailant is alleged to have used a historical artefact, as well as a glass bottle, to attack monks at the monastery. However, emergency services have since confirmed that no one died, but one individual remains in a critical condition in following the assault.

The attack took place at the Santo Espiritu del Monte Monastery around 10am Saturday, with local TV reporting that seven of the monks were injured after a man took the staff from the statue of Saint Louis in the upper cloister and attempted to carry out his plan to "kill the monks." Only two members of the order were able to escape the attack, one who was taking mass, and another sitting in the garden.

A 76-year-old man was rushed to Valencia for treatment after suffering severe head trauma, which had sparked a mistaken report from Spain's Guardia Civil that a person had died in the attack.

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The seven victims of the assault ranged in age from 56 to 95 years old, with three others hospitalised with bruises, cuts, and "trauma." Sources told that the attacker, confirmed as a 46-year-old Spanish national, had used sticks and glass bottles, as well as the historical artefact, to beat the friars.

The local city council in Gilet, near to where the monastery sits in the hills around Valencia, confirmed the arrest of the alleged attacker, stating on X: "The State Security Forces and Corps inform us that during this morning they have proceeded to arrest the aggressor of the friars of Sant Esperit," before going on to call it an "atrocious" act.

In a statement following the attack, the convent said they share in the suffering of the victims. The statement read: "With the exception of Brother Antonio Ivars Solbes, who was in the garden and Brother Federico Allara Aragó, who was in the chaplaincy celebrating mass, the rest of the brothers have been violently attacked and we are worried.

"We also ask for the aggressor to be aware of the damage and be able to rectify behaviour that is not at all typical of the human condition," adds the statement, which asks the brothers "to be more attentive to prevent people from entering our fraternities that can cause damage of any kind, and thus know how to take care of each other."