Police were dispersing hundreds of Catalan pro-independence demonstrators who had been blocking a major road link that connects the Spanish region with France for nearly 24 hours.
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French riot police have clashed with Catalan pro-independence demonstrators who had blocked a major road link connecting France and Spain for nearly 24 hours.
Police on the French side of the border at La Jonquera pushed protesters to the Spanish side, removing debris from the AP-7 highway, a major route on the border that had been blocked in both directions.
Trucks and other traffic had been diverted to another smaller road as protesters installed concrete barriers on the highway and set up a stage to hold concerts.
Catalonia has been rocked by mass protests since long prison sentences were handed down in mid-October to nine separatist leaders who spearheaded a failed independence bid in 2017.
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Asked what Catalan police should do with the protesters sent back over the border from France, Catalan government leader Quim Torra said there was no reason for charges to be brought.
“We ask for this operation to be conducted with exquisite care, so that no one gets hurt,” he told Catalunya Radio.