84 arrested, 132 injured during Barcelona celebrations

[News_Editor]

84 arrested, 132 injured during Barcelona celebrations

2011-05-30 01:09:24 GMT+7 (ICT)

BARCELONA (BNO NEWS) -- At least 84 people were arrested and 132 were injured during overnight celebrations for Barcelona's Champions League victory, El Mundo newspaper reported on Sunday.

An estimated 50,000 fans gathered in the heart of the Catalan capital after Barcelona's 3-1 win over Manchester United in London. Fans began to throw bottles and all kinds of objects, prompting police to act.

According to a police statement, the 84 people were arrested for disorderly conduct, throwing objects, damaging street furniture and attacking law enforcement officers. Around 132 people were injured, most of them lightly. Among the injured there were 44 police officers.

Meanwhile, almost 2,000 protesters continued their sit-in at Plaza Catalunya, near the celebrations. Protesters formed human barriers in an attempt to prevent clashes with the football fans.

Earlier on Friday, at least 100 people were injured after police tried to disperse protesters to end the almost two weeks of demonstrations against high unemployment and the Spanish government's austerity measures.

The spokesman for the Catalan Government, Francesc Homs, defended police actions, saying that they were just trying to allow the cleaning of the area to avoid unrest following the Champions League final football match between FC Barcelona and Manchester on Saturday. The opposition, however, condemned the incident and criticized the authorities for attacking the peaceful protesters.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-05-30

[jackr]

The football: Wft! They won didn't they...

[vermut12]

The football: Wft! They won didn't they...

I live in Spain and used to live in Barcelona for about 6 months. This is the paradox. Everytime the FC Barcelona wins something the fans cause some massive havoc. And all the shop owners starting from Plaza Catalunya and down along Las Ramblas dread these days. As soon as they hear that Barcelona won something again they hurry to pull the blinds down because the fans will soon start breaking and destroying absolutely everything. And by everything I mean lampposts, kiosks, benches, shop windows, cars... And eventually they start fighting the police. And if you accidentely got caught in the middle of this mob (say you were just hanging out in this area when it was all starting) it's really hard to get out of the area quickly because the police blocks all the side streets and there is only one way out...

[samurai]

The football: Wft! They won didn't they...

I live in Spain and used to live in Barcelona for about 6 months. This is the paradox. Everytime the FC Barcelona wins something the fans cause some massive havoc. And all the shop owners starting from Plaza Catalunya and down along Las Ramblas dread these days. As soon as they hear that Barcelona won something again they hurry to pull the blinds down because the fans will soon start breaking and destroying absolutely everything. And by everything I mean lampposts, kiosks, benches, shop windows, cars... And eventually they start fighting the police. And if you accidentely got caught in the middle of this mob (say you were just hanging out in this area when it was all starting) it's really hard to get out of the area quickly because the police blocks all the side streets and there is only one way out...

What happen if the don't win? (If that happen, that they don't win. I know the FC is very good, but do they win all the time?)

[vermut12]

The football: Wft! They won didn't they...

I live in Spain and used to live in Barcelona for about 6 months. This is the paradox. Everytime the FC Barcelona wins something the fans cause some massive havoc. And all the shop owners starting from Plaza Catalunya and down along Las Ramblas dread these days. As soon as they hear that Barcelona won something again they hurry to pull the blinds down because the fans will soon start breaking and destroying absolutely everything. And by everything I mean lampposts, kiosks, benches, shop windows, cars... And eventually they start fighting the police. And if you accidentely got caught in the middle of this mob (say you were just hanging out in this area when it was all starting) it's really hard to get out of the area quickly because the police blocks all the side streets and there is only one way out...

What happen if the don't win? (If that happen, that they don't win. I know the FC is very good, but do they win all the time?)

If they don't win the things are pretty quiet usually. People here go crazy only if their team wins. This is how they express their happines.

[TheWalkingMan]

Sounds like different parts of the USA when their sports team wins.

TheWalkingMan