Pro-Palestine activists plan indefinite campout in Drassanes

The pro-Palestine activists who demonstrated on Thursday evening in Barcelona have planned an indefinite campout where the protest was called, in Plaça de la Carbonera, in Drassanes.

15,000 people, according to the City Council, took part in the rally earlier in the day, with some scenes of tension with police seen.

The organizers say they will not move the camp until their demands are met.

They demand an end to the blockade on Gaza, an immediate release of the members of the Global Sumud Flotilla, a total arms embargo on Israel, and breaking diplomatic, commercial, cultural and sports relations with that country.

New demonstrations are planned for Friday. Two of which, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, are also scheduled to end in Drassanes.

On Saturday, another demonstration will start at noon from Jardinets de Gràcia. This will coincide with other protests that will take place in various places around the world.

The organizers of the campout have announced an assembly for Thursday night to organize the camp.

Police clashes

Tensions reignited around 10 pm, with police charges on the demonstrators around Avinguda Parallel.

The activists placed containers and council fences on the avenue in an attempt to block it, with riot police continuously moving in and out of vans to advance.

Previously, the Mossos d'Esquadra police tried to evict a large group of people on Parallel, eventually pushing them further up the street.

Thursday protest

15,000 people gathered in Barcelona's Plaça de la Carbonera, at the bottom of Parallel, to protest against Israel's interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla vessels on Thursday evening. 

Demonstrators blocked traffic on the Ronda Litoral, the primary ring road on the side of the city closest to the sea, at Plaça de les Drassanes, very close to the bottom of La Rambla.

Numerous Mossos d'Esquadra police officers in riot gear were present, with some moments of tension between agents and protesters.

Some stones were thrown at police officers, while the agents prevented the demonstrators from accessing the highway by deterring demonstrators with their batons. A protest banner that read 'Palestine will win. From the river to the sea' was also confiscated from the demonstrators. 

After the confrontation with police, the crowd turned around and congregated in the Plaça de les Drassanes area. 

Flotilla interception

In the past 24 hours, the flotilla of dozens of boats carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza was stopped short of reaching the shore by the Israeli military.

Those on board, including former Barcelona mayor Ada Colau and Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, have been detained and are expected to be deported. 

In response, people gathered on Wednesday evening in front of the Israeli consulate, while 6,500 students protested earlier on Thursday afternoon against Israel's war in Gaza. 

Organizers say "It was up to our governments to prevent" the flotilla from being intercepted, but "the Spanish government has chosen to take its complicity one step further."