Barcelona council removes “Freedom for political prisoners” banner as requested by election board

The Barcelona City Council will remove the banner that reads "Freedom for political prisoners" that is currently hanging from the balcony of the city hall building, as well as other posters or slogans of this kind hanging on other city buildings. Barcelona’s election board requested the removal of the banner on Sunday and the city council says it will comply even though it stated that it doesn’t agree with why this request has been applied.

According to sources from the Barcelona City Council, the upcoming election in Catalonia is “abnormal” not because of the banners, but because several of the candidates are being held in prison awaiting trial. The Barcelona City Council also highlighted that it will continue “demanding the immediate release” of the jailed Catalan officials and the presidents of the Òmnium Cultural and the Catalan National Assembly, who are imprisoned in Madrid.