Barcelona looting: Morocco cited, with no involvement established
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Bladi
Spanish police are investigating the circulation of calls for looting in Barcelona, where about 30 businesses were damaged or looted and more than 130 people were detained. Morocco is among the countries mentioned in the hypothesis of foreign interference, with no involvement established, according to police sources quoted by La Vanguardia and EFE.
Morocco is among four countries cited in police discussions about possible foreign interference in the looting that shook Barcelona, although no evidence establishes its involvement. Russia, Israel and Iran were also mentioned by police sources quoted by Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia on Friday 30 October, Bladi reports.
Initial investigations also point to the possibility of copycat behaviour amplified by social media algorithms. Calls for violence, circulated under the name Blocus on TikTok, Telegram and WhatsApp, urged people to reproduce unrest seen in France and were sometimes accompanied by AI-generated posters, according to Bladi.
The Guardia Civil announced on Friday the arrest near Valencia of a 20-year-old man described as the suspected founder of Blocus in Spain. Ten people were arrested in several regions within 24 hours, while Barcelona activated its highest alert level, four out of four, ahead of mobilisations announced for Halloween. More than 300 police officers are to monitor transport, according to Bladi.
