Rioting in Central Barcelona on Saturday Night: 100 Arrested, More Than 30 Fires Set, 14 Stores Looted
Rioting broke out in central Barcelona, capital of Spain's Catalonia region, on Saturday evening (October 24). According to Reuters, hooded demonstrators who had taken part in an anti-establishment rally looted shops and set fire to street furniture around the city's central Plaça de Catalunya, and a total of 100 people were arrested.
Núria Parlon, interior minister for the Spanish region of Catalonia, said around 25 percent of those arrested were minors. More than 30 fires were set and 14 stores were vandalised or looted, she said. The area is popular with tourists and weekend shoppers.
Demonstrators had been called out in social media posts under a movement "against the system." The posts also used the slogan "Institut Indignats" — "Indignant High School Students" — a translation of the slogan used to rally students who have protested in France in recent weeks. Social media videos showed people trapped inside shops, including the El Corte Inglés department store, after shutters were lowered to prevent looting, and other posts showed hooded demonstrators dressed in black kicking in shop windows and making off with goods.
Barcelona Mayor Jaume Collboni said acts of vandalism in the city "will not go unpunished," including legal consequences for the guardians of any minors involved.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 西班牙 Barcelona 市中心加泰罗尼亚广场夜景资料照片（骚乱发生地）。照片：Matti Blume 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / File photo: Plaça de Catalunya in central Barcelona, Spain, at night (the area where the rioting took place). Photo by Matti Blume, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
