Junts demands Interior Ministry explanations after police seize Catalan flags in Elche
Catalan party Junts submitted questions in the Congress of Deputies after National Police officers seized estelada flags and arrested a Barcelona supporter in Elche.
Stadium confrontation in Elche
National Police officers confiscated Catalan independentist flags, known as esteladas, from FC Barcelona supporters outside the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero in Elche on Sunday, 23 August 2026. Video recordings published on social media showed riot police pulling a young fan and another supporter out of the stadium queue after seizing an estelada. When the supporter objected and confronted an officer, police personnel deployed batons and struck him. Up to four officers pushed the supporter to the ground, delivered baton blows and a punch to his face, and restrained him in handcuffs while surrounding spectators applauded and shouted encouragement to the police.
Parliamentary demands to the Interior Ministry
On Monday, 24 August 2026, Catalan pro-independence party Junts per Catalunya submitted a series of formal questions to the Ministry of the Interior in Spain's Congress of Deputies. The parliamentary group demanded clarification on the specific legal authority that permitted officers to confiscate the flags outside the ground. Junts noted that Spain's Sports Law explicitly restricts only symbols and messages that incite violence or terrorism, asking whether the government regards the peaceful display of an estelada as a prohibited infraction. The party also inquired whether the ministry had issued specific protocols regarding Catalan political symbols carried by fans traveling outside Catalonia, requesting five-year historical records of similar confiscations.
- Police seize estelada flags and arrest an FC Barcelona supporter outside Estadio Martínez Valero in Elche.
- Junts leaders publicly condemn the police intervention on social media and offer legal support.
- Junts submits formal questions to the Ministry of the Interior in the Congress of Deputies.
Investigation and evidence preservation requests
The parliamentary filing also focused directly on the physical conduct of the officers involved in the confrontation. Junts asked the government to state what specific actions by the fan justified the application of physical force, and whether the intervention adhered to legal principles of proportionality, congruency, and opportunity. The party asked the Interior Ministry if an internal investigation had commenced and if the participating officers had been formally identified. To ensure an objective review, Junts requested the immediate preservation of all available audiovisual materials, including stadium security camera tapes, police body cameras, and official recordings.
Political reactions and legal support
Leadership figures from Junts publicly condemned the police actions across social media platforms following the circulation of the video footage. Party spokesperson in Congress Míriam Nogueras denounced the conduct of the riot officers and called on witnesses to submit further documentation of the event, offering legal support to the detained fan.
These animals have to pay for this abuse and mistreatment.
Junts president Carles Puigdemont also criticised the police action, stating that hostility toward Catalan identity exists across multiple Spanish institutions.
In a healthy society, this would be intolerable. In Spain, it is a merit.
Deputy spokesperson Pilar Calvo pointed out that the estelada is not an illegal symbol and does not constitute an incitement to violence, adding that the party has repeatedly challenged similar flag removals at away matches.
