Cameras captured the intense moment a clash ensued between police and protesters as violent demonstrations rocked Spain on Tuesday.
The chaotic scene involved masses of protesters chanting as some flew flags and brandished flares in front of a police armed with riot shields, according to video footage released by Spanish outlet El País.
📺 TV en DIRECTO | Aumenta la tensión. La Policía carga contra los manifestantes https://t.co/eldGTFjkVR pic.twitter.com/2VHGt62dAL
— EL PAÍS (@el_pais) November 7, 2023
The demonstrations come as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez pushes an amnesty proposal for Catalan separatists who attempted to secede from Spain in 2017, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP). The attempted 2017 secession arose from tensions between the Spanish government and leaders from the country’s Catalonia region, which includes Barcelona, over the question of Catalan independence. Some Catalan politicians who supported the secession were jailed while Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont avoided prosecution by fleeing to Belgium.
Authorities say some of Tuesday’s demonstrators, who oppose the amnesty, carried signs admonishing the separatists as “traitors,” AFP reported.
Así ha sido el paso por Gran Vía del grupo de manifestantes que se ha escindido de la protesta principal https://t.co/eldGTFjkVR pic.twitter.com/i7IJn1BCca
— EL PAÍS (@el_pais) November 7, 2023
Emergency services in Madrid told AFP the demonstrations left a total of 39, including 29 police officers, with minor injuries. Authorities made six arrests. (RELATED: Video Shows Police Deploying Water Cannons Against Pro-Hamas Protesters)
Demonstrations also took place in the Spanish cities of Barcelona and Valencia. Nearly 7,000 Spaniards took to the streets and some were dispersed by police with tear gas, according to AFP.