Three protesters arrested and rubber balls used in housing protests in Madrid

Three protesters from the rally called by Indignados por España in Cibeles were arrested this Saturday on Montera Street when they were trying to reach the Puerta del Sol camp, as confirmed by the Government Delegation in Madrid.

Likewise, the police have fired rubber bullets at far-right groups that were trying to reach Sol near Carrera San Jerónimo and Plaza de Canalejas, after having gathered this afternoon on Alcalá Street, near the Bank of Spain.

Some 400 protesters, according to the Government Delegation in Madrid, have gathered on Alcalá Street in Madrid, in front of the Bank of Spain, against the Puerta del Sol encampment and for “social and national” housing, as the organization itself has indicated. The protest has had the support of far-right groups such as Núcleo Nacional and Democracia Nacional.

During the rally, the protesters have chanted proclamations against the central government, against the camping in Sol, for “social and national” housing, “mass deportations” and the “defense of national sovereignty” after the “invasion of Ceuta”, as the organization has expressed.

The initial intention of the organizers was to reach Sol and concentrate on Alcalá Street, in the vicinity of the square. Finally, they changed the location to the Bank of Spain, as reported by different groups through social networks, where protesters began to arrive around 7:30 p.m.

In parallel, hundreds of other people have gathered at Puerta del Sol shouting “here are the antifascists” to “defend the camp,” as some of the organizing groups, such as Madrid Antifascista, have expressed on their social networks. The campers were waiting for the arrival of these groups to the square, which has been made difficult by a strong police cordon between Banco de España and Sol, where around 500 police officers have been deployed.

Both concentrations take place on the same day that demonstrations have been held over the housing crisis in some 50 locations in Spain, called in Madrid by the Tenants' Union with the support of Workers' Commissions and the General Union of Workers.

In the capital, four columns of protesters converged on Cibeles this morning. The Government Delegation has estimated attendance at around 70,000 people, while the Tenants' Union has raised it to 500,000.

The mobilizations come a day after Congress overturned the Government's royal housing decrees, with the negative vote of PP, Vox and Junts. The eviction of Maricarmen, an 87-year-old woman evicted from her home in the Retiro neighborhood, was the origin of the protests.

The spokesperson for the Madrid Tenants' Union, Valeria Racu, announced this Saturday that the general strike for housing will be "soon", although there is still no specific date because it is being negotiated with the majority labor unions.