- Sputnik International
World
Get the latest news from around the world, live coverage, off-beat stories, features and analysis.

Many Photos of Police Using Force During Catalonia Referendum Fake - Madrid

© AFP 2023 / Raymond ROIGSpanish Guardia Civil guards drag a man outside a polling station in Sant Julia de Ramis, where Catalan president was supposed to vote, on October 1, 2017, on the day of a referendum on independence for Catalonia banned by Madrid
Spanish Guardia Civil guards drag a man outside a polling station in Sant Julia de Ramis, where Catalan president was supposed to vote, on October 1, 2017, on the day of a referendum on independence for Catalonia banned by Madrid - Sputnik International
Subscribe
The actions by police during the Catalan referendum that was deemed illegal by the Spanish authorities have been strongly criticized.

"I think by now many of those pictures have been proven to be fake pictures… I am not saying that all are fake pictures, but some of them are. You know, there have been a lot of alternative facts and fake news here. And, as I said, if there was at all… some use of force, it was not a deliberate use of force. It was a provoked use of force," Spanish Foreign Minister Alfonso Dastis said in an interview to the BBC One TV channel.

A poster with instructions about Lombardy's autonomy referendum is seen at a polling station in Lozza near Varese, northern Italy, October 22, 2017 - Sputnik International
Italy's Veneto, Lombardy to Seek Autonomy, Not Independence Like Catalonia
According to media reports, police resorted to rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the protesters, who attempted to prevent police from shutting down the polling stations, during the independence referendum deemed illegal by Madrid.

The actions of the Spanish police during the referendum have triggered criticism across Europe and prompted a reaction from human rights watchdogs. Days after the vote, Enric Millo, the Spanish government's official representative in Catalonia, apologized for police violence.

The statement of the minister comes amid a report issued by the Catalan government's press service, claiming that over 1,100 people were injured in Catalonia during the region's independence referendum and in the following days, including 431 law enforcement officers.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала