Video shows AI likenesses of people linked to Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist party appearing to admit to wrongdoing

A political ad from Spain’s main opposition party that used a deepfake video of the prime minister’s wife has sparked outrage and set off a wider debate on AI, as the deeply polarised country gears up for general elections next month.

Launched this week across the social media channels of the conservative People’s party (PP), the video used artificial intelligence to manipulate the likenesses of various people linked to Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist party and appeared to show them admitting to acts such as soliciting prostitutes and taking kickbacks.

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© Photograph: JJ Guillen/EPA

© Photograph: JJ Guillen/EPA

© Photograph: JJ Guillen/EPA

Il Frente Amplio che prova a riunire la sinistra spagnola alla sinistra dei socialisti, ha perso una delle sue figure più riconoscibili tre giorni dopo la presentazione. Martedì la ministra della Salute Mónica García, medico anestesista e leader di Más Madrid (la forza progressista della capitale), ha annunciato che non sarà candidata alle elezioni del 29 novembre. Il posto di numero due nella lista di Madrid andrà a una compagna di partito, la deputata Tesh Sidi, mentre lei si concentrerà sulle regionali di Madrid di maggio 2027, dove vuole togliere la presidenza della Comunità a Isabel Díaz Ayuso, la leader dei popolari (PP, centrodestra) che governa la regione.

La spiegazione ufficiale è una “profonda riflessione” e la volontà di mettere “il bene comune” prima dell’interesse personale. Il capolista di Madrid Emilio Delgado (vicecapogruppo di Más Madrid nell’Assemblea regionale) ha assicurato che García “starà dove vuole stare” e che avrà il suo sostegno. Perché una scelta così, a poche settimane dal voto? I motivi reali non li ha spiegati nessuno, ma le letture possibili sono due. La prima è che García preferisca preservare il proprio capitale politico per la sfida con Ayuso, evitando di legare il suo nome a un risultato che i sondaggi descrivono molto difficile: Sigma Dos, uno dei principali istituti privati, stima che il cartello perderebbe seggi anche a Madrid rispetto al 2023. La seconda, sostenuta soprattutto dai media di destra come Libertad Digital, è che sia stata scavalcata da Ada Colau, l’ex sindaca di Barcellona, diventata la candidata di tutta la coalizione.

Sabato scorso, in un auditorium all’aperto sulle rive del Manzanares (il fiume di Madrid), il Frente Amplio aveva aperto la sua campagna elettorale. Sul palco sette volti, alle spalle un grande striscione rosso e giallo. Doveva essere la fotografia dell’unità, ma lo scatto più eloquente era quello di chi non c’era. Il giorno prima, scaduti i termini per registrare le coalizioni, l’accordo con Podemos era definitivamente saltato.

Anche in Spagna la sinistra fa fatica a stare insieme: ecco perché

Il Frente Amplio riunisce quattro sigle. C’è Sumar, la piattaforma dell’ex vicepremier Yolanda Díaz, che fino a oggi ha governato con il Psoe (i socialisti del premier Pedro Sánchez). C’è Izquierda Unida, erede dei comunisti spagnoli. C’è Más Madrid, forza ecologista e progressista della capitale, nata in parte da una scissione di Podemos. E ci sono i Comuns, la formazione barcellonese di Ada Colau, oggi leader dell’intera coalizione e capolista a Barcellona.

Dall’altra parte c’è Podemos, il partito nato dagli indignados del 2014 e oggi molto ridimensionato, guidato da Ione Belarra e con Irene Montero, ex ministra dell’Uguaglianza ed eurodeputata, come candidata. Poi c’è Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (Erc), la sinistra indipendentista catalana, il cui volto più noto a Madrid è Gabriel Rufián, portavoce del partito al Congresso.

Fu proprio Rufián a lanciare l’idea di un fronte ampio, capace di rimettere insieme ciò che Sumar aveva lasciato in frantumi. Per mesi è stato il principale promotore del progetto, che sulla carta sembrava interessante, soprattutto considerando le frizioni tra i partiti alla sinistra del Psoe. Poi la svolta: lui e Montero hanno aperto un canale diretto tra Erc e i viola. Da lì le trattative con il Frente Amplio non sono più ripartite.

L’argomento più plausibile è che, quando è comparso il nome di Colau, Erc abbia deciso di sbarrare la strada a qualsiasi intesa. Il motivo è una ferita barcellonese. Nel 2019 Esquerra vinse le elezioni comunali con Ernest Maragall, ma Colau fu rieletta sindaca grazie ai voti della destra di Manuel Valls (ex premier francese, candidato a Barcellona), con l’obiettivo dichiarato di impedire agli indipendentisti di governare la città. Per Erc non è mai stata archiviata. Rufián, che parla di una “telenovela nefasta” e ammette il proprio fallimento, ha scelto il suo campo: sarà capolista di Erc in Catalogna, con Podemos come unico alleato. L’intesa è ormai operativa. Podemos non si presenta in Catalogna e sostiene Erc, che inserisce alcuni esponenti viola come indipendenti nelle sue liste. Rufián e Montero faranno campagna insieme in tutta la Spagna: il primo appuntamento è sabato 24 a Barcellona, nel quartiere popolare di Nou Barris, con lo slogan “Casa, Vida, Futur“.

Poche ore prima della scadenza il Frente Amplio ha messo nero su bianco l’ultima proposta: un capolista a Madrid e uno in Catalogna per Podemos, la portavoce al Congresso, risorse divise in modo equo. Diario Red, il media diretto dal fondatore di Podemos Pablo Iglesias, l’ha liquidata come una “trappola“, perché un seggio catalano ai viola avrebbe imposto di rompere con Erc. In cambio Podemos chiedeva a Izquierda Unida di fare un passo indietro nelle province più a rischio, ma i dirigenti territoriali hanno chiuso la porta, come aveva già annunciato il coordinatore Antonio Maíllo: niente accordi a pezzi. Montero e Belarra hanno poi sostenuto che le divergenze erano politiche e non di poltrone, rimproverando al Frente Amplio la vicinanza al Psoe. Un riferimento alla lista comune che le due forze presenteranno al Senato, con il nome “Senado de Progreso“.

Dal palco di Manzanares, Colau ha chiuso la questione: “Se qualcuno non vuole sedersi a un tavolo, non si può obbligarlo”. Poi ha ringraziato le 15 organizzazioni della coalizione e assicurato di aver dato “tutto”. Delgado ha scelto l’ironia: basta drammi, non siamo qui per contarci le ferite.

Perché Podemos non ha voluto l’accordo? La risposta più convincente guarda oltre il 29 novembre. I sondaggi sembrano anticipare un governo di PP e Vox (la destra radicale di Santiago Abascal), e Podemos sembra già posizionarsi sui quattro anni successivi. Presentarsi da sola, con una campagna centrata sulla critica al governo uscente, significa farsi trovare pronta a raccogliere la mobilitazione che un governo di destra produrrà quasi da sé. Il prezzo lo pagherà l’intera sinistra. L’unità si è fatta solo dove esiste un terzo attore forte. Nel País Valencià, storicamente terra di destra, Compromís (la sinistra valenciana), Podemos, Izquierda Unida ed Esquerra Republicana hanno firmato una lista unica, “Compromís-Front Valencià”, a poche ore dal limite. Alle Canarie nasce Unidad del Pueblo Canario, con Podemos; in Aragona, CHA-Frente Amplio, senza Podemos.

Cosa dicono i sondaggi: com’è messa la sinistra

Il Congresso ha 350 seggi e la maggioranza assoluta è a 176. La media degli otto principali sondaggi privati di ottobre dà il Pp al 31,9%, il Psoe al 26,5% e Vox al 18,7%: PP e Vox sommati sono in media a 201 seggi e superano la maggioranza in tutte le rilevazioni. Fa eccezione il Cis, l’istituto statistico pubblico, che a inizio ottobre (prima della rottura tra Frente Amplio e Podemos) vedeva il Psoe al 34%, il Pp al 22,2% e Vox al 17,1%.

Per la sinistra radicale le stime sono più basse di quelle che l’accordo avrebbe potuto produrre. Il Cis attribuisce al Frente Amplio il 6,1% e a Podemos il 3,1%. Sigma Dos per El Mundo lo dà al 7,2%, con 9-10 seggi: tra Frente Amplio, Podemos e alleanza valenciana si arriverebbe a 13 seggi, contro i 31 che Sumar aveva ottenuto nel 2023. Nei vari istituti l’area oscilla tra 5 e 17 seggi.

Programmi e fragilità degli alleati a sinistra di Sànchez

Sommati, Frente Amplio e Podemos metterebbero insieme il 9,2% secondo l’istituto Cis, ma divisi restano entrambi sotto soglia in gran parte delle province. La Spagna non vota in un collegio unico: sono 52 elezioni provinciali, con il sistema d’Hondt (proporzionale, ma che premia chi arriva primo). Nel 2023 il seggio più economico di Sumar costò il 9,6% (a Murcia). Dove il collegio è piccolo l’effetto diventa paradossale: a Girona, Lleida e Tarragona, con 6, 4 e 6 seggi, solo i socialisti o Erc hanno speranze realistiche di ottenerne uno a sinistra. Ogni voto dato al Frente Amplio o a Podemos non produce deputati e finisce per favorire i partiti più forti, destra compresa. E superare il 10% non basta: in Navarra e nell’Araba (Álava, nei Paesi Baschi), con oltre il 12% nel 2023, non è scattato nessun seggio. Una coalizione nata per essere «ampia» si presenta, in questo momento, come una forza di nicchia.

Il discorso del Frente Amplio punta tutto sulla casa. Colau ha ricordato il suo passato da attivista contro gli sfratti e da sindaca, rivendicando più di 1.600 abitazioni espropriate e oltre mille costruite in cessione d’uso, e ha chiesto più coraggio al Psoe. L’ex ministro Ernest Urtasun ha evocato il governo di PP e Vox come una copia del “programma della motosega” di Javier Milei, il presidente argentino. L’ex ministro Pablo Bustinduy ha promesso lo stop agli affitti turistici. A convincere dovrà essere quel 21,8% di ex elettori di Sumar che a inizio ottobre non aveva ancora deciso, mentre sullo sfondo cresce il richiamo del voto utile al Psoe. Con l’addio di García e la campagna parallela di Montero e Rufián, il Frente Amplio ha poco tempo per dimostrare di essere qualcosa di più di una somma di sigle.

L'articolo Anche in Spagna la sinistra fa fatica a stare insieme: come si stanno organizzando i partiti alleati di Sànchez per il (difficile) voto di novembre proviene da Il Fatto Quotidiano.

VTM

Aposta na crise habitacional para se manter no poder. Como tantas vezes acontece na história, esta crise ficou condensada num caso, o despejo de Maricarmen, de 87 anos, que morreu duas semanas depois, no hospital, sem chegar a voltar a casa. Tinha sido alcançado um acordo para regressar, pendente apenas da alta médica.

A crise habitacional é para a direita o que a imigração é para a esquerda, o calcanhar de Aquiles que, por razões identitárias e ideológicas específicas, nenhuma das duas consegue fundamentalmente resolver. Apesar de tudo, o desgaste de Sánchez e dos seus aliados é tal que dificilmente algo os poderá salvar, e o PP, aliado ao Vox, vai ficar com o poder. Mas até ao lavar dos cestos é vindima.

Importa, por isso, expor as linhas vermelhas que Santiago Abascal, o espúrio líder do Vox, impõe ao PP (o provável vencedor das eleições) para realizar a coligação que permitirá a sua chegada ao poder. São três: a desregulação da economia, a famosa remigração e a prioridade nacional. Vou dizer-lhes o que penso de cada uma.

A desregulação económica é uma bajulação ao poder económico. Hoje, como no passado, o que se pretende é aliciá-lo para depois o subordinar. Prometem-se cortes de impostos, privatizações e o fim de regulações para depois impor a sua lei. Assim faz Trump, com as tarifas, a golden share na US Steel, a participação no capital da Intel, a pressão sobre escritórios de advogados e universidades ou o uso das empresas de IA como instrumento para dominar e subordinar o resto do mundo.

A remigração é o termo que se apoderou do imaginário de muitos europeus nesta vaga de regeneração identitária, e cuja versão máxima inclui a expulsão de cidadãos de origem estrangeira para, por milagre, tudo resolver. Sobre a prioridade nacional, o que dizer? O nativismo é para a direita radical europeia o que o nacionalismo foi para o fascismo, a sublimação de todos os problemas com uma esmola que preenche a alma. Quem pertence a uma nação histórica e heroica é maior do que ele próprio. Mesmo pobre e em dificuldades, pode sentir-se superior. É a troca do humanismo universal pela pertença à nação. É o salário psicológico da “europitude”.

A crise material entrou na nova política europeia pela via da identidade. Em Espanha, ainda não será o Vox a ganhar, mas sim o PP de Feijóo, um partido da direita tradicional em desconstrução. Na Extremadura e em Aragão já assinou com o Vox a prioridade nacional, ainda que a tente disfarçar de “arraigo”. Em Portugal, segundo as sondagens, a direita radical já disputa o primeiro lugar com o PS. Estamos todos a observar Espanha, porque em breve também nós teremos de decidir. E se o Partido Socialista quer voltar a governar, terá de mudar muito, a começar pela forma como escolhe os seus candidatos à Assembleia da República. Primárias abertas, que entreguem aos eleitores a escolha e voltem a galvanizar quem há muito deixou de se sentir representado.

The post Não vos dão casa. Dão-vos uma pátria appeared first on A Voz de Trás-os-Montes.

Nationalist leaders are framing unrest as consequence of failed liberal governance and open borders

Europe’s far-right leaders have jumped on the violence that rocked numerous cities last weekend, framing it as the inevitable consequence of failed liberal governance and open-border policies and insisting only they can restore law and order.

Months away from key elections in Spain, France and Italy, authoritarian nationalists are eager to weaponise the wave of street unrest, originating in peaceful protests over the cost of living and deteriorating public services but hijacked by violent rioters.

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© Photograph: Abdul Saboor/Reuters

© Photograph: Abdul Saboor/Reuters

© Photograph: Abdul Saboor/Reuters

At least three people have died in severe flooding across eastern Spain after Storm Adam brought extraordinary rainfall to the Mediterranean coast, forcing thousands from their homes and leaving residents stranded on rooftops as emergency services struggled to reach inundated communities.

The worst flooding struck parts of Valencia and Alicante, where swollen rivers overwhelmed roads, flooded residential districts and disrupted transport. Authorities ordered residents of 145 municipalities to remain indoors as rescue operations continued on Monday, 19th October.

The disaster has revived memories of the October 2024 floods, which killed more than 230 people in the Valencia region and prompted widespread criticism of the authorities’ emergency warnings and response.

Thousands evacuated as rivers burst their banks

The coastal town of Oliva, in Valencia province, was among the worst affected areas. Approximately 2,000 people were evacuated from seven campsites as floodwaters spread through low-lying neighbourhoods, while residents elsewhere sought refuge on upper floors and rooftops.

According to reports from the Spanish news agency EFE, emergency crews were reinforced by Spain’s Military Emergencies Unit, whose personnel were deployed from their base at Bétera to assist local firefighters and rescue teams.

Helicopters were used to reach people trapped by the rising water. Roads became impassable, vehicles were swept away and several settlements were temporarily isolated as streams and drainage channels overflowed.

The scale of the rainfall was exceptional even for a region accustomed to intense autumn storms. In parts of Valencia and Alicante, precipitation approached 700 litres per square metre over approximately 48 hours, equivalent to 700 millimetres of rain.

Pego, in neighbouring Alicante province, recorded more than 600 millimetres within approximately 36 hours, placing considerable pressure on local waterways and drainage infrastructure.

Fatalities and emergency restrictions

Two women died during the weekend, including one swept away by floodwaters near Cabrera de Mar, north of Barcelona, and another whose body was recovered near Sagunto, in Valencia.

A third woman was found dead inside a flooded property in Oliva during rescue operations on Monday. Separately, a 64-year-old man died after suffering a heart attack at a flooded campsite in the same town, according to EFE’s account of the incident.

The regional authorities activated level-two emergency arrangements, enabling additional resources to be mobilised as local services confronted the consequences of prolonged rainfall.

At the height of the emergency, stay-at-home restrictions covered approximately 800,000 people. These measures were subsequently eased in many municipalities, although restrictions remained in force in particularly exposed districts.

Schools were closed in affected areas, roads were blocked and rail services disrupted. The situation remained particularly difficult where floodwaters had entered homes, commercial premises and tourist accommodation.

Renewed examination of emergency preparedness

Storm Adam has inevitably drawn comparisons with the disaster of October 2024, when catastrophic flooding in eastern Spain exposed serious weaknesses in emergency communication, evacuation procedures and coordination between public authorities.

That earlier disaster generated disputes over responsibility between regional and national institutions, particularly concerning the timing of warnings and the deployment of rescue resources.

The latest flooding places those questions back on the political agenda. Spain’s decentralised administrative structure gives regional governments substantial responsibility for civil protection, while the central government can provide military assistance and additional emergency resources.

The deployment of the Military Emergencies Unit demonstrates how rapidly local incidents can require national intervention when extreme rainfall affects several municipalities simultaneously.

The challenge extends beyond issuing weather warnings. Authorities must determine whether warnings reach vulnerable residents, whether evacuation routes remain accessible and whether emergency personnel can intervene before flooding becomes dangerous.

In communities close to rivers, floodplains and coastal drainage systems, these decisions become particularly consequential when rainfall accumulates over a short period.

European implications of repeated flooding

The disaster also raises questions about infrastructure investment and the application of European flood-risk legislation.

Under the EU’s Floods Directive, Member States are required to assess flood risks, prepare hazard maps and develop management plans designed to reduce the consequences for human health, economic activity and the environment.

Those obligations require national and regional authorities to identify vulnerable areas and consider preventive measures, including land-use planning, flood defences and emergency preparedness.

Extreme rainfall does not produce the same consequences everywhere. The effects depend partly on local geography, drainage capacity, urban development and the condition of waterways.

Meteorological warnings had also extended towards Catalonia as the weather system moved northwards, creating additional concern in areas where saturated ground could increase the risk of further flooding.

For the affected municipalities, the immediate priorities remain the completion of rescue operations, restoration of essential services and assessment of damage to homes, roads and businesses.

The longer-term examination will concern whether the emergency arrangements and infrastructure improvements undertaken since the 2024 disaster were sufficient to reduce the consequences of another major autumn storm.

Por Juan Manuel de Prada La obsesión psicologista ha impulsado muchos «diagnósticos clínicos» sobre el doctor Sánchez, donde el personaje aparece pintado con rasgos de «psicopatía» o «narcisismo» extremo; a…

Italy has extended checks on travellers from Spain for another week, but talks between Giorgia Meloni and Pedro Sánchez have opened the way for an end to reciprocal restrictions imposed after the migration crisis in Ceuta.

Italy and Spain have agreed to work towards ending their reciprocal Schengen border controls following discussions between Prime Ministers Giorgia Meloni and Pedro Sánchez at the European Council summit in Brussels. Rome nevertheless extended its restrictions for another seven days on Friday, 16 October, as the two governments consider how to bring their respective measures to an end.

The decision marks a possible turning point in a dispute that has disrupted travel between two of the European Union’s largest countries since the summer. According to the notifications recorded by the European Commission, the restrictions concern air and sea connections between Italy and Spain, which do not share a land border.

The two governments have instructed their interior ministers to consider alternative arrangements over the coming week. Although neither side has formally withdrawn its measures, the agreement to coordinate their removal suggests that both capitals are seeking a way out of an increasingly uncomfortable confrontation over migration and internal European security.

How the Ceuta crisis reached Schengen

The dispute began after an extraordinary influx of migrants from Morocco into Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta in late July. More than 72,000 people crossed the border, prompting serious questions about the management of the EU’s external borders and the possibility of onward movements into other member states.

Italy responded by introducing checks on passengers arriving from Spain, arguing that the situation created risks for public order and internal security. Rome also raised concerns about the possible movement of individuals presenting security threats, although the extent of any such movement remained disputed.

Madrid rejected the justification and introduced reciprocal measures. What began as an emergency response to events on an external border consequently developed into a disagreement about whether one Schengen member could impose restrictions on another on the basis of anticipated migration movements.

EU Today examined the original Spanish retaliation in August, when the dispute first threatened to turn temporary border controls into an instrument of political pressure.

The wider consequences of the Ceuta incident have raised questions about the vulnerabilities exposed at the EU’s external border and the effectiveness of common European migration and crisis-response policy.

The limits of temporary border controls

Schengen is built on the principle that people can travel between participating countries without routine internal border checks. Member states nevertheless retain the right to reintroduce temporary controls in response to serious threats to public policy or internal security, subject to the requirements of EU law.

The difficulty lies in determining when those exceptional powers are justified. Italy has maintained that the Ceuta crisis warranted precautionary action. Spain has argued that controls imposed specifically on travellers from its territory were unjustified and discriminatory.

These opposing positions matter beyond the two countries. If concerns over irregular arrivals in one member state become sufficient grounds for another to introduce sustained checks, the distinction between Europe’s external borders and its internal travel area becomes increasingly difficult to maintain.

The operational results have also entered the political argument. Italian figures cited during the dispute indicate that nearly half a million passengers were checked during the first month, with 31 refused entry. Those numbers demonstrate that the measures were substantial, but do not by themselves establish whether the original security concerns were proportionate to the restrictions imposed.

Madrid, meanwhile, has maintained that migrants involved in the Ceuta influx had not moved onwards to mainland Spain in the manner suggested by Italian concerns.

Meloni and Sánchez seek a practical compromise

The latest discussions offer both governments a route towards de-escalation without formally conceding their underlying positions. Meloni can present the additional week of controls as a continuation of Italy’s security precautions, while Sánchez can point to an agreement to prepare their coordinated removal.

The two prime ministers remain politically divided on migration. Meloni has consistently argued for stronger border enforcement and deterrence, while Sánchez has defended an approach incorporating legalisation and labour-market integration for migrants already living in Spain.

Those disagreements were also visible during the Brussels summit, where European leaders returned to the question of migration management and the consequences of national decisions for the wider Union.

For Brussels, the immediate concern is whether the two governments can replace competing national restrictions with arrangements that address security concerns without unnecessarily interrupting movement between Schengen countries.

A coordinated end to the controls would not resolve the underlying problems exposed by Ceuta. It would, however, remove one of the more unusual internal consequences of that crisis and demonstrate that political negotiations can still prevent emergency border measures from becoming semi-permanent.

The decisive period is now the coming week. Whether the controls expire as planned will depend on the discussions between the Italian and Spanish interior ministries and their ability to agree practical alternatives.

Por Juan Manuel de Prada No me dirijo a esos pipiolos que gastan fachaleco y pulserita con la bandera rojigualda, que tan beneficiosos resultan a tus propósitos, pues distraen la…

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced a snap election for late November after two housing bills were defeated in a parliamentary vote on Friday, October 2. The bills came amid widespread mass mobilizations demanding urgent action on the country’s housing crisis, following the eviction of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid.

Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of approximately 50 cities over the weekend in support of these demands.

“It is true that there are still many injustices to correct, many social goals to achieve, and many problems to solve – above all in the areas of inequality, public services, and access to housing,” Sánchez said in his speech on Monday, as he appealed to voters to give progressive forces more decisive electoral support to allow them to implement reforms more easily.

Real estate speculation drives housing crisis

While Sánchez’s administration has profiled itself as one of the more progressive governments in Europe in terms of international policy, national movements remain frustrated by the lack of decisiveness it has approached making changes at home – including in housing policy.

For years, tenants unions have been warning against the different ways house-owners, particularly real estate speculation funds, have exacerbated housing insecurity for the general population.

Existing anger spilled over as Maricarmen Abascal, an elderly tenant in Madrid, faced eviction from the home she had lived in for 70 years. After the development company Urbagestión Desarrollo e Inversión SL acquired the house Abascal lived in, they imposed a 275% rent increase that she was not able to meet, leading, after a lengthy legal process, to her eviction at the end of last month.

Read more: Die Linke wins Berlin election with focus on socialization of housing

The mobilizations that followed addressed a wider set of problems. “Maricarmen’s situation reflects a housing model that prioritizes real estate profits while abandoning the very people who built our neighborhoods over the decades,” Madrid Tenants’ Union (Sindicato de Inquilinas e Inquilinos de Madrid) warned.

“Most serious of all is that this situation cannot be understood without considering the weight of laws inherited from the Franco regime that denied women basic rights,” the union emphasized in May. “The original contract was signed solely by Maricarmen’s father because the legal system of the time rendered women invisible within the family. Had that same contract been signed today, both parents would have been named as holders, and Maricarmen would remain fully protected.”

“Yet an extremely restrictive interpretation of the regulations has ultimately weighed more heavily than social reality, than the desire to protect those who rent, and more than seventy years of roots in a neighborhood,” they added. “For the Madrid Tenants’ Union, the position is clear: no formalistic interpretation of the law can justify evicting an 87-year-old woman from the home where she has lived her entire life simply to boost the profitability of a real estate investment.”

Unions promise building general strike for housing

The protests formulated several demands to the government, including a ban on eviction of vulnerable tenants where alternative housing is not available; a limit to short-term and room rentals; a rent freeze; and an extension for contracts ending in 2026 and 2027.

Such demands were generally by the public, as well as by trade unions. “Housing and work are not separate struggles,” unions wrote, pledging to work towards a general strike for housing. “The rise in rents is a direct transfer of wealth from the working class to rentierism. Our wages end up, month after month, in the pockets of the rentiers who control our homes.”

The uproar pushed Sánchez’s government to reflect these demands in two bills it presented to parliament. Most considered this a significant breakthrough for the housing movement despite the official texts not fully corresponding to the protesters’ vocabulary and the vote taking place on two separate proposals. 

Watered down or not, right-wing and far-right parties voted against both bills.

Read more: Far-right leaders gather in Madrid to “make Europe great again”

“We have a democracy held hostage by rentiers and speculators,” the progressive party Podemos wrote as protests rolled out over the weekend. “The housing mobilization must keep growing and move toward a general strike until the speculators and those who defend them in the institutions have nowhere left to hide.”

“Between now and November 29, the voices of all of us who want peace must be heard,” Irene Montero from Podemos added after the snap election announcement. “Those of us who want our sons and daughters to avoid war and to have healthcare and education, instead of money being spent on weapons; who want homes to live in; who want jobs and time to spend with our loved ones; and who want the cost of living to go down.”

Artificial intelligence was the concept of choice among European speakers during the first days of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Prime ministers and presidents recognized opportunities and invoked stronger regulation – then returned to advocating for more military spending, planning deterrence, and avoiding harsh words for the Trump administration.

Read more: The AI frontier asks to be paced: anatomy of a panic

“I’m afraid I may lack originality in describing it [the situation in the world],” French President Emmanuel Macron remarked, referring to the overlaps between interventions. For once, he was not wrong. Most European speeches described the world in terms of crisis, yet failed to spell out the connections between that situation and the behavior of the United States. Macron’s speech was no true exception.

Instead, most seemed keen to endear themselves to the Trump administration. New-ish British Prime Minister Andy Burnham called the UK “America’s closest ally” and announced a new “AI defense partnership” with the US – giving listeners something to truly worry about when AI is concerned.

The East European anti-communist set

Others were even friendlier to the UNGA host country. Romanian President Nicușor Dan said it was a particular pleasure to address the assembly in the US, “a country with which Romania shares a long history of friendship, a nation towards which Romanians look with respect and gratitude, including for its essential contribution to the fall of the Iron Curtain and the opening of my country’s path towards democracy and freedom.”

Read more: Hybrid threats: Romania continues to self-sabotage through militarization

Remarks directed against Eastern European countries’ socialist past were echoed by Polish President Karol Nawrocki and Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković. These speeches reaffirmed commitment to the West, including the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and gratitude for positive changes these leaders perceived over the past 30 years.

“Millions of Romanians know from their own experience the difference between a communist system that oppressed them and stifled their initiative and freedom of choice, and a democracy that rewards work, innovation, and personal responsibility,” Dan added. 

None of these Eastern European leaders addressed the mass unemployment, emigration, and crumbling public services that soared while “work, innovation, and personal responsibility” took over.

Peace through protection, resilience through military strength

European interventions went to great lengths to reaffirm support for Ukraine and, perhaps more notably, criticism of the Putin administration. Plenty used the floor to repeat the belief that European countries must rearm in the face of a perceived – and still materially nonexistent – “Russian threat.”

As Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy referred to a vision of “peace through protection” and showcased defense cooperation agreements, Burnham talked of resilience through military strength. 

Read more: ‘Ukraine is no longer a sovereign country,’ says sociologist Volodymyr Ishchenko

Some commended themselves for quickly approaching NATO’s 5% expenditure commitments. Others turned to “obstructions” of freedom of navigation – referring, of course, to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz caused by the illegal US-Israel war on Iran. Yet most European speeches did not even mention the US in this context, let alone offer comparable words of condemnation dedicated to Russia.

Spain vows to continue believing “humanity can continue to progress”

As has become customary, the speech delivered by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez was among the few to stray from the underwhelming regional tone. Sánchez, whose administration has been attacked by the US government on several occasions, spoke of the conditions facing the world today as exacerbated by the selfishness, ignorance, and cruelty of some UN member states – not naming anyone in particular.

He singled out cruelty as the worst of these pillars driving powerful nations’ behavior in international spaces: “A cruelty that no longer flinches at the sight of a starving child’s ribs or a hospital reduced to rubble.”

Read more: Over 1 million years of children’s lives lost in Gaza during genocide, study finds

Sánchez said Spain would not give in to attacks on multilateral institutions, nor would it stop believing “that humanity can continue to progress.”

“We are not going to do it, because we want to live up to our children’s expectations. Because we know that, in a few years, future generations will look back. They will study this decisive decade. And they will ask us what role each of us played. They will ask us what we did when some countries began to break the rules and others decided to turn a blind eye. They will ask what we did when defending what we believed in began to cost dearly. And when that happens, we want to be able to tell them that we did not stop fighting. We did not. We want to be able to tell them that we gave everything to leave them a more peaceful, sustainable, and fairer world.”

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