MADRID – More than 50 people were arrested and dozens injured during a second night of protests that turned violent in several Spanish cities.
The protests were sparked by the imprisonment of a rapper who had insulted the monarchy and praised terrorism. The protests began peacefully late Wednesday in dozens of Spanish provincial capitals and other towns in the northeastern Catalonia region, home to the rapper Pablo Hasél.
But as the evening wore on they turned violent, with rioting, impromptu barricades made from trash containers and fires, and damage to shops.
In Madrid, Barcelona and smaller cities, anti-riot police fired rubber or foam bullets at baton-charged protesters, who threw objects at officers and set trash containers alight.