Activist protests Aviation Week in Barcelona for 'destroying planet' and 'complicity with Israel'

Around 70 activists protested on Wednesday against Aviation Week, an aeronautics trade show that will take place from October 22 to 24 at the Fira Barcelona Gran Via.

The 'No to Aviation Week' campaign, supported by about a hundred organizations, criticizes the show for "destroying the planet."

"In a context of climate emergency, this event is inadmissible," campaign spokesperson Clàudia Custodio said.

Campaigners also criticized the event for "promoting the genocide of the Palestinian people" due to the presence of Israeli companies at the fair.

"It is an event that promotes aviation with companies linked to the military industry and the genocide in Gaza," Custodio added, criticizing the Catalan government for not cancelling the fair.

Activists claim that three Israeli companies are taking part in the event, one of which is "fully owned by the Israeli government and companies that profit from the massacre in Gaza."

The demonstrators laid a sign on the ground with the names of thousands of people killed in Gaza, and a red carpet with the sheets used to cover the bodies of the deceased.

"We are here so that this barbarism is not normalized," Custodio said.

The Aviation Week show is being held for the first time in Barcelona and is expected to have "record attendance" with more than 580 exhibitors and 10,000 visitors from 86 countries.

Among the visitors are senior executives of airlines, manufacturers, aeronautical industry companies and service providers.