Catalan Protests as Cabinet Meets in Barcelona

Pro-independence protesters are blocking roads in some parts of Catalonia as Spanish ministers hold a cabinet meeting in Barcelona. The decision to move the meeting was aimed at reducing tensions, months after Catalan leaders were jailed for trying to break away from Spain. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Catalan leader Quim Torra agreed on Thursday to an "effective dialogue".

But anti-Madrid protests were expected to grow during the day. More than 20 roads, including the AP7 and A2 motorways, were blocked by protesters across Catalonia as police were deployed in large numbers ahead of the cabinet meeting. The protests were co-ordinated by a radical group, the Committees for the Defence of the Republic (CDRs).