The final stage of Spain’s Vuelta cycling race was cancelled Sunday as pro-Palestine protesters flooded Madrid’s streets, disrupting the race just before its finish.
Hundreds of pro-Palestine demonstrators blocked the streets of Madrid, forcing organisers to cancel the final stage for the first time in the event’s history.
Protesters marched through the course, toppling barriers and prompting police to respond with tear gas and charges. The disruptions occurred as cyclists, including Danish race leader Jonas Vingegaard, approached the finish line. Despite the cancellation, Vingegaard was declared the winner.
Earlier, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez praised protesters, commending “the Spanish people who are mobilising for just causes like Palestine.”
Opposition leader Isabel Diaz Ayuso criticised the remarks, warning Sanchez would be “directly responsible for every incident.”
The race faced protests at multiple stages, prompting Madrid authorities to deploy 1,100 police officers and 400 Guardia Civil members for security along the final 106.6-kilometre leg between Alalpardo and the city centre.
The rallies, organised by the Palestinian Committee of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement (BDS), specifically targeted the participation of the Israel-Premier Tech cycling team. Political leaders from IU, Podemos, and Más Madrid backed the demonstrations.
Vingegaard expressed understanding for the protests, telling local media, “Everyone has the right to protest. I understand the reason, but it’s a shame that it has to happen here.”
Tensions persisted until the penultimate stage on Saturday, when around 100 activists blocked the road 18 kilometres from the finish at Bola del Mundo, resulting in one arrest for assaulting a police officer. Podemos leaders Ione Belarra and Irene Montero also participated in parallel protests in Cercedilla, forcing alterations to the route.
U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to make the Strait of Hormuz part of U.S. territory have been mocked by Iran's Deputy Foreign Ministe...
Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised deepening ties with North Korea, saying Moscow and Pyongyang are coordinating their efforts to ensure ...
Russia and Ukraine traded large-scale overnight attacks targeting energy, industrial and military facilities on Saturday, with a three-month-old ba...
Hundreds of flights have been cancelled or rerouted at Catania Airport over the past week as ash from Mount Etna’s ongoing eruption continues to disrupt air travel in Sicily.
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz remains under its control, rejecting U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim of “total control” over the strategic waterway and insisting it will not reopen until Washington fulfils its commitments under an interim deal.
The U.S. will impose unprecedented measures on Iran in order to economically isolate the country, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said.
One person has been killed and six others injured after an explosion at a petroleum storage facility at the Port of Rotterdam, prompting an investigation into the cause.
Wildfires across England and Wales have reached their highest level on record, according to the National Fire Chiefs Council, as firefighters struggle to contain outbreaks following a spell of extreme heat.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised deepening ties with North Korea, saying Moscow and Pyongyang are coordinating their efforts to ensure “regional security and stability”.
Russia and Ukraine traded large-scale overnight attacks targeting energy, industrial and military facilities on Saturday, with a three-month-old baby killed and 11 people injured in a Russian drone strike on a residential building in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region.
At least 20 people have been killed after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off eastern Indonesia early on Saturday, triggering small tsunami waves and dozens of aftershocks, officials say.
Jason Arday, the former University of Cambridge professor at the centre of a plagiarism row, has been found dead. He was appointed Cambridge's youngest ever Black professor in 2023, but quit on 5 August, after being accused of lifting passages from his PhD from the work of other academics.
Wildfires across England and Wales have reached their highest level on record, according to the National Fire Chiefs Council, as firefighters struggle to contain outbreaks following a spell of extreme heat.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment