Bilbao prepared for an afternoon of possible disturbances, but the Blocus call ended without anyone showing up at the announced meeting point. After several days of messages on social media warning of attacks on commercial establishments and clashes with the Police, the center of the Biscayan capital woke up this Saturday, October 31, with storefronts protected by wooden panels, businesses closed, and a significant deployment of the Ertzaintza and the Municipal Police. However, the mobilization planned for 18:00 on Gran Vía did not take place.
The absence of participants was acknowledged by an account linked to Blocus Bilbao through TikTok, which posted a message during the night of Saturday lamenting the failure of the call. "No one has come to the Bilbao meet-up, Gran Vía," its managers admitted, who also criticized those who had shown interest in the mobilization, but ultimately did not attend.
According to Cadena SER, the day ended without incidents related to the Blocus call, despite the concern it had generated among merchants and neighbors. The situation contrasts with the security preparations carried out during the previous hours, when numerous businesses decided to close early or reinforce the protection of their storefronts to avoid possible damage.
Blocus announced that it was suspending the call and then deleted the message
The uncertainty began hours before the gathering. Blocus had called its followers for 18:00 on Saturday, October 31, coinciding with Halloween, in a mobilization spread through different social networks and messaging groups.
During the morning, an account linked to the group posted a message announcing that the call was being suspended due to fear of possible infiltrations. The communication justified the decision for security reasons, but the announcement was deleted shortly afterward, while the initial call continued circulating on the internet.
The disappearance of the message made it impossible to confirm whether the gathering had been definitively canceled. Added to this was the closure of one of the Telegram channels related to the call, where during the previous days messages had been shared about possible actions against businesses and police officers.
The lack of a clear cancellation notice led the authorities to maintain the preventive operation, while commercial establishments decided to act with caution. Finally, when the scheduled time arrived, the announced gathering did not take place and Blocus’s own account later acknowledged that nobody had shown up.
Boarded-up shop windows and closed stores on Gran Vía in Bilbao
The possibility that the disturbances from previous days would be repeated prompted a preventive response from the merchants. Establishments on Gran Vía, including stores of large retail chains, covered their shop windows with wooden planks and protective structures to avoid material damage in the event of looting.
Some businesses kept only the main entrances open, while others chose not to raise the shutter or to bring forward their closing time. The influx of shoppers was also lower than usual in certain commercial areas during Saturday afternoon.
The security deployment was especially visible in the center of Bilbao, with patrols of the Ertzaintza and the Municipal Police distributed along Gran Vía and its nearby streets. The officers monitored the main access points and the commercial areas that had appeared mentioned in the messages circulated by the channels related to Blocus.
Despite the preparations, there were no looting incidents or confrontations related to the call. This Sunday, November 1, establishments in the Basque capitals have begun removing the protections installed in their shop windows after a night without incidents.
Police had arrested the alleged administrator of Blocus Bilbao
The failed call took place barely a day after the National Police arrested a 20-year-old man in Bilbao, identified as the alleged administrator of the Instagram account "Blocus Bilbao" and of a Telegram channel used to spread messages related to the mobilization.
According to the Ministry of the Interior reported on Friday, October 30, the detainee is being investigated for alleged offenses of conspiracy to commit public disorder, conspiracy to commit offenses against property, and belonging to an organized group. The Police maintains that from the channels he administered, calls had been spread to provoke disturbances, businesses were being identified as possible targets, and instructions related to the making of incendiary devices were being shared.
After being brought before the court, the young man was released provisionally without bail, although he must comply with the appearance obligations established by the court while the investigation continues.
The arrest dealt a new blow to the communication channels linked to Blocus, although it has not been proven that it was the cause of the low attendance at Saturday’s rally. During the previous hours there was also the disappearance of Telegram groups and the publication of contradictory messages about the holding of the demonstration.
A demonstration by Aske did bring together hundreds of people in Bilbao
Although the Blocus call ended up empty, Bilbao did host another demonstration during Saturday afternoon, organized by the collective Aske to demand the freedom of Aratz and Malen, two people arrested in Irun and remanded in provisional prison by order of the National Court over their alleged involvement in terrorist offenses.
The march brought together hundreds of participants and went through the city center from Elíptica square to the vicinity of the Arriaga Theater. The mobilization took place without incidents, according to the information published about the day.
The coincidence of both calls contributed to increasing the police presence in the center, although they were different mobilizations and attendance at the Aske demonstration should not be confused with the Blocus call.
Surveillance was also conditioned by the disturbances recorded on Monday, October 26 in Bilbao, which ended with 19 arrested and material damage. However, the Basque authorities had already warned that a direct link between those disturbances and Blocus had not been proven.
Blocus fails in Bilbao after several days of concern over the looting
The absence of attendees is in contrast to the alarm generated during the previous days. The messages spread from accounts and channels linked to Blocus had caused a significant police deployment and protection measures in numerous businesses, especially on Bilbao's Gran Vía.
The episode also highlights the difficulty of determining the real scope of certain calls circulated through social media. Although some messages included threats against establishments and officers, their circulation on the internet did not guarantee that there was an organized mobilization capable of gathering participants in the street.
For now, the police investigation remains open and the absence of incidents during Saturday does not allow future calls to be ruled out. However, the balance of this weekend in Bilbao is clear: protected businesses, a broad security deployment and a Blocus gathering that never took place.
The account itself linked to the movement ended up acknowledging the failure of the event, while the establishments in the city center have begun to return to normal this Sunday after a day marked more by prevention than by the disturbances that had been announced.