Thread by @MrMcEnaney

It seems that crowds of protesters are being chased by police through the narrow side streets in Girona.

I've moved down into one of the main squares on the west side of the river. Tension is certainly mounting and the bars are starting to close up, presumably for fear of the police operation moving here too.

The vast majority of the protesters are young (certainly younger than me) and many have their faces covered - I can't say I blame them after what I've just seen.

I had to run from one of the police charges along with a group of the protesters but they don't seem to be in any mood to admit defeat.

That said, people are clearly nervous, even those who are not involved, and the people here know much more about the Spanish police than I do.

I find myself thinking about home despite coming here to get away from it. This is all pretty much unthinkable in Scotland.

There's a general strike tomorrow and people are telling me that they expect it to be widely observed. It feels as though that's likely to feed into more protests, with more people, resulting in more opportunity for conflict

But to be clear: it doesn't feel as though I'm looking at a rabble of undirected anger. It's very, very clear that what's going on here is a reaction against the Spanish state.

And it also feels like the Spanish state's response to these protests (which let's remember go back to 13 year prison sentences for organising a referendum giving Catalonia the chance to choose it's own future) aren't going to shut this down.

I also feel that I should point out that this is a brilliant little city (and I generally hate cities) with a huge amount of character. But the people here want something that should be simple - a voice.

Everyone - from bar staff to protesters has made me feel welcome here. I think it would be hard not to fall a little bit in love with the place. But my need for a wee holiday isn't even close to the most important thing.

"Self-determination is a right, not a crime"

I've come back over to the old town on the east of the river, where I'm staying, and am having a beer and processing everything. It's half 11 here and all I want to do is write.

I'm going to spend tomorrow walking the old city walls with my wife but, if circumstances allow, I'll report on any protests going on as part of the strike.
And yes, the strike will disrupt my holiday, but that really isn't even slightly important.

Currently up on the highest part of the city wall and although we can't see the protests (yet) we can definitely hear them. And they're getting much, much louder.

The general strike march through Girona centre

We want to vote free

'Catalonia does not surrender'

A long line of tractors has blocked one of the central streets

Road blocks in and around Girona according to the local news

There are fires burning somewhere east of the river. I'm on top of the city wall and I can hear 4 things: dogs, birds, a helicopter and what must be an absolutely enormous crowd somewhere down below

I don't think there's any chance of the police breaking this up - there are just far too many people here. The mood is upbeat but defiant.

Hearing quite a lot of explosions in the last couple of minutes

The consensus seems to be that the largest bangs are coming from the police rather than the protesters. Seems they're trying to clear everyone out and are being characteristically heavy-handed about it.

Confirmed

My wife and I have been moved inside a restaurant in the square and the owner has closed the shutters.

The staff are brilliant though - still helping people, cooking, serving food.

Managed to cross back over the river into the old town where things are much more calm. The sounds of the explosions vibrate through the wee narrow streets though, and it sounds like things are escalating.

More fires have been lit. This one is just next to the train line.

No sign of things calming down

It's....intense

A few seconds after this we had to run

Here's what's been painted on the pillars of the nearby train lines

Looks like the police are now using tear gas

But it isn't stopping the protesters who keep regrouping and returning

It feels as though the police are trying to split the crowd and push people over the river into the old town, but there's a maze of narrow, twisting streets there. If it moves into those it's hard to see how things don't get much, much worse.

From where I'm standing, this feels like what fascism looks like.

I can also confirm that even from a distance tear gas is unpleasant

The police just started to withdraw from positions by one of the bridges. As soon as they did the protesters advanced. Then more tear gas was fired

The police seem to have pulled back but I'm not sure where to or why. The cloud of tear gas is huge but people are pressing forward.

The police seem to have withdrawn and still haven't entered the old town (which would be a crazy move). Crowds are now flowing back over the river.

Some of the protesters had gotten up onto the railway lines above the police positions, which I think might have been part of the reason for the withdrawal.

13 explosions in a row, all from the police, as the conflict moves further into the new part of town on the west of the river.

I'm up at the cathedral now, and it is so huge that it is concentrating the sounds from across the river. Crowds chanting; police firing teargas; tension still rising and rising.

But the cathedral bells are still ringing.

@threadreaderapp unroll please