Spanish Police Evict 400 Migrants from Abandoned School Near Barcelona

Police in northeastern Spain carried out eviction orders Wednesday to clear hundreds of migrants from an abandoned school building north of Barcelona, highlighting the ongoing challenges of migration and housing in the country.

Riot-equipped officers from Catalonia’s regional police force entered the school premises in Badalona early Wednesday morning under judicial orders that had ruled the building unsafe for habitation. Most of the approximately 400 occupants, anticipating the eviction, had already left to search for alternative shelter.

While the operation was completed without significant violence, tensions flared as displaced residents passed armored officers on their way out. Spain’s National Police detained 18 people suspected of residing in the country without proper authorization, attorney Marta Llonch told The Associated Press.

“Putting 400 people onto the street in winter just before Christmas, you have to have a hard heart to do that,” said Younous Drame, a 50-year-old man from Senegal among those forced to leave.

Badalona, a working-class city bordering Barcelona, had seen the empty school building become home to migrants predominantly from Senegal and Gambia since it was abandoned in 2023. Many earned a living by collecting and selling scrap metal from the streets.

The judicial order required the Badalona town hall to provide evicted residents with access to social services but did not mandate housing solutions for all squatters. Llonch expressed concern about the immediate consequences.

“Many people are going to sleep on the street tonight,” she said. “Just because you evict these people it doesn’t mean they disappear. If you don’t give them an alternative place to live they will now be on the street, which will be a problem for them and the city.”

As the eviction progressed, people loaded their belongings onto carts and bicycle trailers to transport their possessions elsewhere. According to El País newspaper, the Badalona town hall will offer temporary housing to approximately 30 people. Catalonia’s regional social services are attending to another 60 individuals and may provide temporary housing as well, regional officials informed the AP.

Xavier García Albiol, Badalona’s conservative mayor, had requested the court-ordered eviction, arguing the squat posed a public safety hazard. The concern is not unfounded—in 2020, an old factory occupied by around 100 migrants in Badalona caught fire, killing four people.

After the eviction concluded, García Albiol visited the site and declared that “what is unacceptable in this country is that Spain’s government lets absolutely everyone in,” highlighting the political tensions surrounding migration policy.

The eviction underscores deeper social issues in Spain. While many of the school’s occupants lacked legal documentation, others possessed residency and work permits but couldn’t afford housing amid Spain’s cost-of-living crisis—a situation that has sparked widespread social unrest and public protests across the country.

Spain, like other southern European nations, has experienced steady migration flows for more than a decade as people risk dangerous Mediterranean and Atlantic crossings in small boats. While many developed countries have adopted restrictive migration policies, Spain’s left-wing government has emphasized the economic benefits of legal migration.

The eviction in Badalona reveals the complex intersection of migration policies, housing affordability, and social integration challenges that continue to shape Spain’s political and social landscape.