15 arrested, clashes with police, fast food chains attacked and containers set ablaze in Barcelona pro-Palestine march

On a day of pro-Palestine protests and a general strike across Spain, demonstrators in Catalonia staged further protests in Sants, Barcelona and in Manresa on Wednesday afternoon.

In Barcelona, police used pepper spray to clear protesters blocking the team buses of the Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team outside Sants Station. 

The Israeli team were due to play a fixture against Baxi Manresa on Wednesday evening.

At around 4.45pm, a crowd gathered outside a hotel near Barcelona's main train station behind a banner reading "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free."

"No passaran!" ("They shall not pass!"), protesters chanted, as organizers expained that the Hapoel Jerusalem buses were close by.

A group of 20 to 30 demonstrators sat down blocking a road near the train station.

After initially letting them sit, Catalan police, the Mossos d'Esquadra, then suddenly rushed to move the crowd, pushing them with batons and using pepper spray. 

With the protesters dispersed, the Hapoel Jerusalem buses drove by.

"We were sitting on the ground, huddled together, and they lined up in front of us and started pushing toward us," two demonstrators told Catalan News.

"They said twice, 'Come on, please, step back,' but after the 10-second warning they hit us with the pepper spray anyway," Alba said.

"We were in the second row. There wasn’t even time to see that they were using pepper spray. We got it full on," Max added.

"From there, it was just a scramble to find somewhere to avoid being trampled. I actually got hit hard on the way," he said.

These early clashes stoked tensions ahead of the march, which was scheduled to start at 6pm. The Hapoel Jerusalem players reached Manresa despite several demonstrations and the team was able to play against Baxi Manresa.

As the march began outside Sants Station along Tarragona Street, protesters attacked a Burger King, throwing debris, setting off flares, and smashing the shop’s windows.

Burning containers were also reported in the area, and the Mossos d’Esquadra made several arrests.

However, the disruptive acts were carried out by a small minority, while the protest leaders and the bulk of demonstrators continued their march. 

Local police Guàrdia Urbana said that there were 13,000 protesters, while organizers said around 50,000 people took to the streets.

Hours after the demonstration started, around 8:00pm, the thousands of demonstrators reached the Israeli consulate in Barcelona.

There, there were riots and clashes between police and demonstrators. Many containers were on fire, and police started by using pepper spray against demonstrators who tried to approach the consulate, despite being well protected.

Emergency services on site treated several injuries, and Mossos d'Esquadra police arrested several people due to riots.

Dozens of containers were on fire, including a palm tree.

Mossos d'Esquadra police arrested 15 people due to the clashes.

Manresa

Protesters also blocked access to the Nou Congost arena in Manresa ahead of the Baxi Manresa-Hapoel Jerusalem fixture, due to take place behind closed doors due to safety concerns.

Protests began in the morning with roadblocks on the C-25 motorway as part of the general strike in support of Palestine.

Later, groups of people gathered at various points on the route to the venue, with the aim of preventing the game from going ahead.

The EuroCup game between Baxi Manresa and Hapoel Jerusalem was scheduled to begin at 8.45pm.

After leaving Barcelona Sants Station following tense protests, the players arrived at the Manresa venue around 6.15pm to play the game, amid a heavy police presence.

On Sunday, Bàsquet Manresa (known as Baxi Manresa for sponsorship reasons) issued a joint statement with CB Canarias (La Laguna Tenerife) announcing that both clubs' upcoming European games against Israeli teams would be played without spectators, citing safety concerns.