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After the arrest of the Catalan rapper Pablo Hasél, several thousand people took to the streets in Barcelona and other Spanish cities on Tuesday.

There were clashes between the police and protesters, as a reporter from the AFP news agency in Barcelona reported.

Hasél had been sentenced to nine months in prison for lese majesty and verbal attacks against the Spanish police and was arrested that morning after he was supposed to have surrendered until last Friday.

Hasél, whose real name is Pablo Rivadulla Duró, barricaded himself in front of the police operation with dozens of supporters at the University of Lleida.

The operation to arrest Hasel began early in the morning.

“They will never bow to us, despite all the repression!” The 32-year-old shouted when he was arrested, his fist in the air.

Around 1700 people gathered in Barcelona to demonstrate for the rapper's release.

Some carried "Free Pablo" signs through the crowd.

However, as the demonstration began to break up, a handful of demonstrators started setting fire to large garbage cans and throwing stones and other objects at the police.

There were similar incidents in Lleida, as well as Girona and Valencia.

Protesters set fire to objects in the street

Source: REUTERS

Numerous people protested against the arrest in Barcelona

Source: dpa / Emilio Morenatti

There were clashes between protesters and security forces

Source: AFP / JOSEP LAGO

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Hasél's conviction is based on a series of Twitter posts in which he attacked the monarchy and the police.

He described police officers as “shitty mercenaries” and accused them of killing protesters and migrants. 

Hasél wrote on Twitter: “I am locked in the University of Lleida with some supporters.

So you have to break in here if you want to arrest me and put me in jail. ”In a telephone conversation with AFP, he had previously described Spain as a“ democracy forgery ”.

"Death to the fascist state!"

At the moment of my arrest Hasél protested with the words: “It is the fascist state that arrests me.

Death to the fascist state! ”A spokesman for the police said:“ We are taking him straight to prison. ”

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The sentence against Hasél had already sparked protests in Spain.

A petition calling for the rapper's release has been signed by more than 200 artists, including well-known director Pedro Almodóvar and Hollywood star Javier Bardem.

There have been several protests in Madrid and Barcelona over the past few weeks.

Last week, the Spanish government announced a reform of the criminal law, whereby “verbal excesses in the context of artistic, cultural or intellectual” actions should no longer fall under criminal law.

Vice-Prime Minister Carmen Calvo did not want to comment on Hasél's arrest.

Referring to the plans to reform criminal law, she said that freedom of expression must have "room for understanding and tolerance in a mature democracy like ours".

For many Spaniards, the Hasél case brings back memories of the rapper Valtonyc, who was convicted of similar allegations in 2018 and then fled to Belgium.

The extradition of Valtonyc requested by Spain is rejected by Brussels on the grounds that the allegations against him are not a criminal offense in Belgium.

The left-wing party Podemos, which is part of the government, criticized Hasél's arrest.

Anyone who thinks they are progressive must be "ashamed", it said in a Twitter message.