Police clashed with demonstrators outside an asylum center near Madrid following the rape of a young woman by a man of Mali origin

Anti-migrant protesters in Spain clashed with police after a man of Malian origin was detained on charges of raping a young local woman. The unrest broke out on Friday night outside a migrant center in Alcala de Henares, a suburb of Madrid.

Police earlier arrested a 21-year-old man in connection with the brutal rape of a Spanish woman of the same age near the center last weekend. The suspect allegedly beat and sexually assaulted the victim before fleeing. However, he was subsequently identified based on surveillance footage as one of the asylum seekers living in the migrant center. He has been placed in provisional detention without bail.

Around 300 people joined the protest to support the rape victim outside the migrant center late on Friday. Footage posted online showed demonstrators pushing against police lines near the facility, where some 2,000 migrants are reportedly housed, calling for its closure and for changes to migration laws.

Protesters carried banners denouncing "uncontrolled" immigration, including signs reading "Intruders, get out!" They also chanted insults at Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, criticizing his pro-migration stance.

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The demonstration turned violent after right-wing groups, including Nucleo Nacional and Democracia Nacional, joined in. Videos showed police using batons and shooting rubber bullets to chase protesters away from the center.

A prior protest on Wednesday also ended in clashes, with at least four demonstrators detained, local media reported. Organizers have announced another rally for Saturday.

Earlier this week, Judith Piquet, the mayor of the municipality housing the facility, said she would formally request the closure of the migrant center. She claimed residents had been raising concerns about the facility for months and criticized the central government for opening it without consulting the city council or studying its local impact. Piquet said the center is overcrowded, lacks integration and security plans, and has created "an environment of insecurity and disorder in the surrounding area." She called on the government to improve security measures at all migrant centers nationwide.

The EU has been grappling with a migration crisis since at least 2015, largely driven by conflicts in the Middle East, Africa, and later Ukraine. While many member states initially welcomed asylum seekers, several have since introduced border controls and other legislation due to rising migrant-related crime.

Spain has taken a different approach. Prime Minister Sanchez sees migration as key to addressing labor shortages and sustaining the welfare system, and has pushed for better migrant integration. Sanchez has, however, urged early adoption of the European Pact on Migration and Asylum, a so-called solidarity mechanism adopted last year that requires fair distribution of asylum seekers across the EU and penalizes states that refuse to accept relocated migrants.

(RT.com)