Mossos Agents Say Enough and Point to Generalitat After Assault in Lleida

The wave of violence in several cities in Catalonia is leading to an open war between police unions and institutions. After the brutal attack on the Mossos d'Esquadra officers last Sunday in Lleida, the police unions have said enough. The latest to react has been the independent union USPAC.

This union has shared on social media the image of the open head of one of the injured mossos. With this, they want to raise awareness of the seriousness of the problem. This union speaks openly of an "attempted murder" of police officers in Lleida.

They also share a statement in which they point directly to the Generalitat and the police leadership. They warn that "these are not isolated incidents," and they demand a public and immediate condemnation of the events from the Generalitat. They demand the police leadership to assume their "responsibility" for "inaction and neglect of their duties."

Their complaint conveys the same spirit as that of SAP-FEPOL: the feeling that the agents have been left alone by the institutions and police leadership. "Those who attack us will pay, and those who abandon us will too," warns USPAC.

Brutal Attack on Law Enforcement Officers

Several mossos patrols intervened on Sunday in a brawl in the La Mariola neighborhood in Lleida. USPAC reports that "a group of about forty people ambushed USC and ARRO patrols" and attacked the officers "with sticks and iron bars." The officers who fell to the ground were violently attacked, "with the intention of finishing them off."

The union already warned of the situation on March 3, in a statement titled "Lleida Is Getting Out of Our Hands." "Today, unfortunately, everything we already warned about is dramatically confirmed," they now say. They also lament the lack of police resources in Lleida, despite the increase in crime and conflict in the city.

Additionally, USPAC requested on April 24 in the Congress of Deputies the toughening of penalties for attacks against law enforcement officers. From 2020 to today, attacks on police officers have increased by 47%.

They Appear as Accusers

USPAC has announced its intention to appear as an accuser in light of the serious events that occurred in La Mariola. They demand charges of attempted homicide against the identified perpetrators of the attack. They announce that they will go to the end to "purge responsibilities."

The officers demand "an urgent reinforcement of public safety personnel" and the "real improvement of police equipment." They also request "institutional recognition and effective protection for the officers who defend the rule of law in the streets of Catalonia."

The statements from SAP-FEPOL and USPAC coincide in denouncing the abandonment of the officers by the institutions and police leadership. They complain that for years the authority of the police in Catalonia has been undermined and legal protection for the officers has been removed in a context of rising violence.