MADRID — Police in Spain evicted an 87-year-old woman from her Madrid apartment on Wednesday, bringing intense public anger to a head as hundreds of demonstrators gathered outside to protest the removal.
Maricarmen Abascal, who had lived in the capital's Retiro district for more than seventy years, was given just thirty minutes to gather her essential belongings before being carried out of the building on a stretcher and taken away in an ambulance.
The high-profile eviction has laid bare the mounting pressure faced by long-term tenants amid soaring rental prices, aggressive gentrification, and a critical shortage of affordable housing across Spain's major urban centers. The property had been acquired by an investment firm seeking a steep increase in rent. According to legal representatives, despite late-stage humanitarian appeals, pending court filings, and an offer from an anonymous benefactor to cover the rent, the landlord refused to sign a new lease or delay the proceedings.
The dramatic scene triggered fiery protests outside the apartment building, with riot police forcibly clearing demonstrators who attempted to block the doorway. As the housing crunch continues to polarize Spanish politics, the incident has further intensified national debates over tenant protections, rent controls, and the widening chasm between market-driven real estate policies and vulnerable residents.
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