The housing encampment in Puerta del Sol was evicted this morning by the National Police and the Municipal Police of Madrid, more than a month after its start. The operation resulted in two arrests, according to police sources cited by 'EFE', who place the beginning of the intervention around three in the morning and assure that no major incidents occurred.
At that time, about 300 people were sleeping in the settlement. After their departure, municipal cleaning services began to dismantle the tents, which will be transferred to City Council depots so that their owners can claim them.
Two versions of the intervention
The Government Delegation in Madrid has defended the eviction as a measure of “last resort”, preceded by communications with the participants. According to their explanation, the withdrawal of the main organizations and the incidents reported by the Police had modified the circumstances of the encampment.
The institution maintains that the operation was carried out without violence and sought to "guarantee the peaceful exercise of fundamental rights, protect people and property, and restore the ordinary use of Puerta del Sol."
The participants offer a different version. The official account of Acampada 26S has denounced a “violent police intervention” and assures that several people were injured by “blows and the use of pepper spray.” The organization has disseminated videos and asked for images from those who witnessed the eviction to study legal actions.
From Sol to the neighborhoods and the November 11 call
The protest began on September 26, after the eviction and subsequent death of Maricarmen Abascal, 87, who had lived for seven decades renting in the same home. Her case prompted the mobilization to demand answers to the housing crisis.
Some of the organizing committees had announced over the weekend their dissolution and the transfer of activity to the neighborhoods to prepare for the general strike on November 11. However, those who remained in the square had communicated this Monday their intention to continue there until that call. The eviction occurred before that date.
