Eviction of 87-year-old sparks encampment protest in Madrid over housing crisis

Tens of thousands of protesters returned Sunday to Madrid’s historic Puerta del Sol plaza after the Sept. 23 eviction of María del Carmen Abascal, an 87-year-old who had lived in the same apartment for more than seven decades. The demonstrators, including multigenerational families, are camped overnight for a second day, demanding stronger tenant protections, anti-fraud measures, and a ban on evictions when alternative housing isn’t available. Abascal was carried from her Retiro-area home on a stretcher and placed in an ambulance. Footage spread across Spain, fueling anger at authorities and real estate investment firms critics describe as “vulture funds.” The Socialist-led government is expected to announce new housing measures at its cabinet meeting next Tuesday.