The Ertzaintza arrested 19 people and is investigating three more after violence in Bilbao following a protest against a cancelled Vito Quiles event. Seven detainees are minors; cars and rubbish bins were set alight.
Protesters moving away from the University of Deusto set fire to a police motorcycle and rubbish containers on Lehendakari Aguirre Avenue. They threw stones at officers and the Ertzaintza station in the Deusto district. Later, vehicles and more bins burned elsewhere in Bilbao.
The Ertzaintza said 19 people had been arrested, with three others under investigation. Seven detainees are minors; among the others were three 18-year-olds and a 19-year-old. The force said the remaining eight were still being investigated. The three additional people under investigation are a 17-year-old and two 22-year-olds. Earlier reports put the arrest total at 14, then 16 during the evening, before the Ertzaintza announced the final figure of 19.
The unrest followed a demonstration against content creator Vito Quiles’s planned appearance at the university. The event was due to begin at 19:00 outside the Deusto campus. Quiles cancelled it on social media about half an hour beforehand, citing security concerns. El País reported that the Ertzaintza had warned him the risk of incidents would be “very high” if he attended; Quiles said he was cancelling for the safety of attendees. Deusto had already suspended campus activity from 14:00 and ordered a preventive closure from 15:00, citing security concerns and police guidance. The university said the event was external to the institution, neither organized nor supported by it, and had not been authorized on its premises. It also said it had remained in continuous coordination with the Ertzaintza. Basque minister for science, universities and innovation Juan Ignacio Pérez Iglesias said he did not consider the university’s decision correct.
Several thousand people attended the afternoon protest near the campus, while about 2,000 students had marched through the city centre at midday. After the gathering broke up, several hundred people headed towards Lehendakari Aguirre Avenue. A construction container was also set alight on Francesc Maciá Street. There, hooded protesters threw flares and stones at officers. The disturbances later reached Plaza de Euskadi, near the Deusto Bridge, and the city centre, where around half a dozen vehicles were set on fire. EFE later reported attacks on commercial premises as well.
The police response came two days after unrest in Barcelona, where at least 128 people were detained and businesses were raided, according to a separate report. In Bilbao, the reported damage also included attacks on shops and urban furniture.
Lehendakari Imanol Pradales condemned the violence as intolerable. Security minister Bingen Zupiria said the scenes appeared to echo violent movements elsewhere in Europe. Bilbao mayor Juan Mari Aburto rejected the protesters’ claim to antifascism. He expressed support for affected shopkeepers and vehicle owners, while also acknowledging residents who endured the unrest.
EH Bildu’s Bilbao spokeswoman, María del Rio Pereda, also condemned the events. Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of the People’s Party, blamed what he described as intimidation by the violent left and promised a government focused on public order on 29 November. The source material says groups using the name ‘Blocus’ have circulated protest guidance online and planned further appearances in Madrid and other Spanish cities for Saturday 31 October.
