Catalonia: 90% back independence on day of violence

At least 800 were injured in violent clashes with police during yesterday’s independence referendum

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An election official carries an empty ballot box out of the polling station after Catalonia’s contentious referendum
(Image credit: 2017 Getty Images)

Catalan officials say more than 90% of people who voted in yesterday’s referendum, deemed illegal by the government in Madrid, expressed a desire to break free from Spain.

The referendum, and the violence that accompanied it, “sent shock waves through Europe”, says The Times. “One protester lost an eye to a rubber bullet and elderly voters were seen with blood streaming from head wounds.”

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