Spanish authorities say more than 100,000 people took part in a pro-Palestinian protest that interrupted the final stage of the Spanish Vuelta and forced organisers to cut the race short on Sunday, capping a campaign of disruptions to the Grand Tour cycling event.
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The central government’s representative for the Madrid region said authorities estimated that more than 100,000 people joined Sunday’s protest. The number could not be independently verified.
The opposition accusing the leftist government of permitting an “international embarrassment” and comments from Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Sunday brought an angry response from Israel.
Demonstrators denouncing the participation of the Israel-Premier Tech team in one of cycling’s major races overwhelmed police and invaded the course in the Spanish capital, forcing organisers to cut short the final stage.
A spokesman for the central government representation in the Madrid region told Agence France-Presse that 100,000 people had taken part in the pro-Palestinian protests, adding that two people had been arrested.
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The unrest was the culmination of pro-Palestinian activism against Israel’s war in Gaza, with protests disrupting the three-week race on several occasions.