Mossos d’Esquadra officers face a formal legal complaint following their use of pepper spray to disperse a pro-Palestine demonstration in Barcelona.
Six individuals, supported by several activist and union groups, have filed the complaint concerning an incident that occurred on 15 October near Sants station.
The protest was part of a wider strike action for Palestine and aimed to block the exit of an Israeli basketball team from a nearby hotel.
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Consequently, around a hundred demonstrators sat down in the street. The police response, which involved pepper spray, has now become the subject of serious legal scrutiny.
Mossos pepper spray use questioned by legal groups
Furthermore, the complainants, represented by organisations including Alerta Solidària, Irídia, and the CGT, argue the police action was unlawful. They allege it violated fundamental rights to strike, protest, and freedom of information. The complaint details that Mossos vans deployed to the area and initiated a charge involving pushes, a ‘onion-peeling’ dispersal technique, and the repeated use of pepper spray directly into faces without prior warning.
This operation reportedly left around forty people affected. The document, seen by Tot Barcelona, states demonstrators were encircled by two police cordons. Officers then began physically lifting people from the ground by their arms. Almost simultaneously, and also without warning, an officer sprayed the crowd indiscriminately with Oleoresin Capsicum (OC) spray, commonly known as pepper spray.
The complaint asserts this was an “indiscriminate and repeated” use of force against peaceful, seated protesters. Therefore, it allegedly breached legal principles of necessity, proportionality, and concurrence. The groups argue such instruments should only be used when there is no less harmful alternative and when strictly necessary to control violence or imminent risk—conditions they claim were absent.
Medical reports detail injuries from police action
Moreover, the legal submission includes medical reports detailing physical injuries sustained by protesters. These describe symptoms like irritation, vomiting from inhalation, and in one case, an acute bronchospasm—a serious tightening of lung muscles. One affected person stated they were surrounded and physically blocked, making escape impossible when the spray was deployed.
Some of those sprayed held union responsibilities. In one instance, an agent allegedly sprayed a person who was already standing and showing no resistance, leaving them unable to open their eyes for ten minutes and with significant breathing difficulties. Medical reports confirm cutaneous reactions, with some individuals requiring hospital emergency treatment and intravenous antihistamines.
The complaint also references an internal report from the Department of Interior, issued after a request by the CUP party. This document indicated that the use of OC spray during the 15 October mobilisation was “authorised by the command of the operation during the events, and not previously.” The complainants argue this shows there was no prior risk assessment or preventive planning, contravening minimum standards for less-lethal weapon use.
Additionally, they lament that despite the department acknowledging a protocol for pepper spray use exists, it has not been provided by the department led by Councillor Núria Parlon. This, they say, “prevents verifying whether the police action… was adjusted to internal criteria.” At a press conference, Irídia’s litigation coordinator, Sònia Olivella, insisted pepper spray “cannot be used against passive resistance” and that its use “violated fundamental rights.”
Xavi Monge of Alerta Solidària added that the strike for Palestine was properly called and the administration should have guaranteed it, “exactly the opposite of what happened.” He concluded that the police action sends a “clearly coercive” message regarding the right to strike. This incident adds to ongoing discussions about policing and protest rights in Catalonia, following recent political accusations concerning public order funding.
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