The riots recorded this Monday in Bilbao after the protests against the call of the ultra agitator Vito Quiles have left at least nine arrested, according to the provisional balance attributed to the Security Department of the Basque Government. The incidents occurred in the Deusto neighborhood after Quiles suspended his event, scheduled for 7:00 p.m., on a day that had already forced the university campus to close preventively.
The fires have affected at least half a dozen cars, several containers, and a Municipal Police motorcycle. Barricades have been erected on Lehendakari Agirre Avenue and various fires have been registered, requiring the intervention of the Fire Department. There have also been object throws against the Ertzaintza, whose riot police have charged and advanced through the streets of the area.
Security has condemned the altercations and indicated that a group headed towards the Deusto police station with stones, setting fire to the municipal motorcycle along the way. The department considers that those who carried out the attacks acted premeditatedly to cause disturbances, despite knowing that Quiles' call had been canceled.
The violence followed the peaceful mobilizations against his visit. In the morning, thousands of students had marched through the center of Bilbao in a demonstration called by Ikasle Antolakunde Sozialista (IAS). In the afternoon, two marches converged in front of the University of Deusto, with banners rejecting fascism and calls for class unity against far-right discourses.
The campus had been closed since 3:00 p.m., after suspending all its activity at 2:00 p.m. following the indications of the Ertzaintza. The university had made it clear that the event was external to the institution, that it did not organize or support it, and that it had not authorized its celebration within the premises.
Vito Quiles had canceled at 4:06 p.m., hours before saying it on social media
The Security Department has detailed a chronology that places the cancellation well before Quiles' public announcement. According to their statement, the agitator called at 2:00 p.m. to ask if he could move the event to another location. The Ertzaintza replied that this alternative was not possible and, at 4:06 p.m., received his decision to desist from the call in writing.
When he communicated the suspension on X, Quiles assured that the person in charge of the device had warned him of a "very high" risk of incidents. In that message, he accused those leading the protests of being "former ETA members, street terrorists and other criminals", without providing evidence to support these claims. He also called the protesters "rabble".
Acabo de hablar con el jefe del dispositivo de la Ertzaina y me advierte de un riesgo “muy elevado” de incidentes en Bilbao ante mi acto de las 19h.
— Vito Quiles 🇪🇸 (@vitoquiles) October 26, 2026
Dado que hay ex miembros de ETA, terroristas callejeros y otros delincuentes encabezando las protestas, se suspende la charla.…
Hours earlier, he had already responded to the student mobilization with insults. "We have managed to get a lot of lazy people out of bed," he wrote, before presenting what happened as "an unprecedented success." His publication ended with a "now for a beer, slobs."
The event was part of his 'Mafia or Homeland' tour, with which he is calling to vote for the opposition in the general elections on November 29. Quiles also linked the suspension in Bilbao to that election campaign. "We will return to Bilbao. But after responding to them on 29N as they deserve," he announced.
