Police arrested three protesters near Puerta del Sol after a far right rally in Madrid. Officers used rubber bullets when groups tried to cross the security cordon around the housing camp.
Police arrested three people on Montera Street in central Madrid after they tried to reach the Puerta del Sol camp. The Delegación del Gobierno en Madrid confirmed the arrests. Officers also fired rubber bullets near Carrera de San Jerónimo and Plaza de Canalejas when groups tried to move forward.
The lines held. A police cordon separated the Banco de España area from Sol. Around 500 officers were deployed between the two points.
Several days earlier, police had detained two people accused of breaching a cordon around the Real Casa de Correos during the same campaign connected to the Sol camp.
The rally drew about 400 people, according to the Delegación del Gobierno en Madrid. Indignados por España organised it as a protest against the Puerta del Sol camp and in favour of "social and national" housing.
Núcleo Nacional and Democracia Nacional backed the demonstration. Participants shouted against the central government and the Sol camp. They also called for "mass deportations" and the "defence of national sovereignty" after what organisers described as the "invasion of Ceuta".
The organisers first planned to meet at Alcalá 21 near the square. They later moved the gathering to the Banco de España area after groups announced the change on social media. Protesters began arriving at about 19:30.
The incident formed part of a broader housing mobilisation: Reuters reported that tens of thousands of people took part in nationwide demonstrations on the same day, with large marches held across Spain. In Madrid, the far right rally was therefore taking place alongside a much wider protest movement focused on the housing crisis.
Hundreds of people gathered in Puerta del Sol at the same time. They shouted "aquí están los antifascistas" and said they were defending the camp. Madrid Antifascista used the same description online. People staying at the camp expected the opposing groups to try to reach the square.
Police kept the two groups apart. The arrests on Montera Street and the rubber bullets on nearby routes showed how officers handled the confrontation. Reuters also reported that police used rubber bullets to stop attempts to break through toward the camp.
Housing demonstrations took place in around 50 Spanish towns that day. In Madrid, the Sindicato de Inquilinas called the protests with support from Comisiones Obreras (CCOO) and the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT). The Sol camp had already become a visible part of the housing dispute in an earlier report.
The rally moved from Alcalá 21 to Banco de España. The confrontation moved with it, onto the streets linking the two sites. Hundreds gathered on each side, while 500 officers stood between them. Access to Sol became the main security concern.
The day ended with arrests and police intervention beside the camp. The housing dispute had also become a fight over access to a central public space. Officials kept the rival groups apart by force.
