In Barcelona 3 arrests, 127 reported and 1440 identified in anti-riot raids

Three arrests, 1,440 people identified and 127 reported: this is the toll of the maxi-security device deployed since Saturday in Barcelona to prevent the riots and looting announced on social media by the digital group Blocus for Halloween evening. The Mossos d'Esquadra, the Catalan police, reported this in a statement.

Hundreds of Catalan and urban police officers yesterday cordoned off the city center and access to public transport, in an operation at the highest level of alert, to prevent new incidents from occurring, a week after the serious riots of 24 October, when the violence and looting in Barcelona led to 133 arrests, including at least 70 minors, and over 500 identifications.

Two of the three arrested yesterday, both adults, were wanted, while the third was arrested for resistance and disobedience. The 127 complaints concern the possession of tools that could potentially be used for theft and vandalism and that of narcotic substances.

The mobilization also prevented new incidents from occurring in a dozen other cities in Catalonia - including Girona, Lleida, Badalona and Terrazza - where the Blocus group had called for demonstrations on social media. In the center of Barcelona, ​​as in that of Madrid and other Spanish cities, in particular in Valencia, dozens of shops had protected their windows and facades with wooden or metal panels and structures to protect themselves from possible attacks, while many had anticipated their closure.