Barcelona: 20,000 people march for housing, ending with clashes and burning containers

The protest for the housing crisis gathers thousands of people in Barcelona and ends with disturbances: young people burn containers and throw objects at the Mossos, who respond with charges and arrests.

The protest called on Monday in Barcelona for the housing crisis has ended with serious incidents. Several groups of young people, many with their faces covered, have burned containers and thrown objects at the officers at the end of the march, according to the Mossos d'Esquadra.

The demonstration started at 20:00 hours in plaza Urquinaona and proceeded without incidents until the junction of Paseo de Gracia and Gran Vía. The Guardia Urbana estimated the attendance at around 20,000 people, while the organisers claim 120,000.

At around 21:30 hours, once the march was called off, the police announced via loudspeaker that the area needed to be evacuated, but many protesters remained there. A group of rioters burned containers on calle Casp, affecting a parked car, and threw fireworks, glass bottles, cobblestones, and other blunt objects at the officers.

Some erected barricades with containers, fences, and bicycles, and threw chairs and tables at the police. Around 22:15 hours, the first charges by the Mossos occurred, resulting in several young people being arrested, as confirmed by EFE.

The police action initially forced the protesters to disperse, but they regrouped around plaza de Cataluña, where violent actions resumed, such as throwing bricks at the Mossos or new burnings of containers, rubbish, and cardboard. Various units of the Firefighters arrived in the city centre to extinguish the burning containers and other objects.

A few metres away, in the centre of plaza de Cataluña, the encampment for housing continues with several dozen tents.

The demonstration was initially scheduled for last Saturday, but the red alert for heavy rain postponed the mobilization to this Monday afternoon. The protest coincided with the announcement by the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, of the call for elections on 29 November following the failure to process the housing decrees last week in the Congress of Deputies.