Spain begins the longest official mourning of democracy, 10 days of tribute to the victims of the coronavirus crisis.

The Spanish government has declared a 10-day period of national mourning starting today, Wednesday the 27th of May,  for the more than 27,000 people who have died with the novel coronavirus in Spain, the longest official mourning period in the country’s democratic history.

Flags will wave at half-mast in more than 14,000 public buildings across the nation and on Spanish naval vessels until June 5, under the declaration made Tuesday. King Felipe VI, as Spain’s head of state, will preside over a solemn memorial ceremony once the country emerges from the lockdown imposed two and a half months ago, the government said.

Writing on Twitter, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said it would be “10 days, the longest period of mourning in our democracy, in which we will all express our sorrow and pay homage to those who have died.”