Bilbao’s Casco Viejo lost its public lighting after an electrical sabotage shortly after 7.30pm. Plaza de Santiago and the streets of Somera, Telleria, Artecalle, Belostikale and Carnicería Vieja were left without light.
The 24-hour general strike took place across Spain on 11 November 2026, including Euskadi. Demands centred on housing access and higher wages, alongside calls to protect public services. The main Basque call was associated with the majority Basque trade-union movement, while UGT and CCOO issued a separate call. The action came amid rising housing costs and inflation. Elsewhere in Spain, it also affected public transport, ports and factories.
The Ertzaintza reported 16 arrests during incidents linked to the general strike in Euskadi. Three men were also placed under investigation for alleged public disorder, and more than 200 people were identified. A related report on strike disruption in València covered separate road blockages. A national tally reported by Europa Press recorded 40 detainees and 476 strike-related incidents between 10pm on 10 November and 11am on 11 November, including 13 arrests in Euskadi at that earlier reporting cut-off.
Portugalete accounted for seven arrests: five men and two women. The women were aged 34 and 35; the fifth man was 50 and Spanish. Three men were detained in Vitoria-Gasteiz, aged 24, 29 and 31. Arrests in Agurain and Zamudio involved Spanish men aged 31 and 52, while a 32-year-old Spanish woman was detained in Donostia / San Sebastián.
In Bilbao, police arrested two men aged 38 and 41 and a 38-year-old woman; all three were Spanish. The three men under investigation in Errenteria were also Spanish, aged 27, 35 and 49. The Ertzaintza said 2,200 officers had been mobilised for the strike. By approximately 9pm, the Basque tally stood at 16 detainees, three people under investigation and more than 200 people identified.
Incidents included damage to shops and street furniture, burning rubbish containers and barricades blocking roads and access routes to businesses and industrial estates. Shortly before 7pm, two people were assaulted as a march passed the PP headquarters in Barakaldo. Nine officers were injured by thrown objects or physical assaults and taken to medical centres.
