Tensions and fires follow independence referendum anniversary rally in Barcelona

Hundreds of people gathered in central Barcelona on Thursday evening to mark the ninth anniversary of Catalonia's October 1, 2017 independence referendum, with tensions between protesters and police.

Around 600 people took part in the demonstration, according to local police.

Organised by the Catalan National Assembly (ANC), the Committees for the Defence of the Republic (CDR) and the Assembly of Young People, the march began at Plaça Urquinaona and ended outside the National Police headquarters on Via Laietana.

Protesters chanted for Catalan independence and against the Spanish state.

Some burned Spanish flags during the march, while others voiced opposition to the presence of the Mossos d'Esquadra, Catalonia's police force.

Anti-fascist chants could be heard, but there were also flags bearing slogans such as "Catalonia for Catalans," associated with the far-right wing of the independence movement.

ANC's Ignasi Rigau described the 2017 referendum – deemed illegal by Spain – as a "great victory against the [Spanish] state."

He challenged pro-independence parties to say whether they were "willing to join us," adding that, if they were not, they should "make way."

"Otherwise we will run them over," Rigau said.

After the demonstration ended, tensions escalated in and around Plaça Urquinaona. Police said hooded protesters threw fireworks, eggs and smoke canisters at officers guarding the National Police headquarters before the confrontation moved towards the square.

A group of mostly young protesters dragged rubbish containers into the streets, setting six of them on fire and throwing objects at the Mossos police line, according to the Catalan police. 

Officers eventually dispersed the group using police vans, allowing firefighters to extinguish the fires.

The ANC said the political and democratic questions raised by the 2017 referendum "remain open" nine years later and called for "dialogue, respect for plurality and a firm defence of freedoms."

Earlier in the day, the Catalan Parliament backed efforts to promote a "country-wide understanding" aimed at resolving the political conflict and "advancing Catalonia's national and social sovereignty."

Parliament called for the "full and immediate" implementation of the amnesty law and condemned "the undemocratic obstruction by the courts that refuse or delay its application."