Casa Árabe faces the decisive hours for its continuity in the Aguirre Schools of Madrid, the building on Alcalá street that it has occupied since 2008. Less than two days before the deadline granted by the City Council to vacate the property, students, artists, and defenders of the institution have moved the protest to the center of the capital with the aim that the mayor, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, reconsiders the decision.
The main mobilization will be this Sunday, August 30 at 7:00 PM at Puerta del Sol, where the group Defensoras y Defensores de Casa Árabe has organized a "Festival of Resistance for Casa Árabe." "The goal is for the mayor to listen to us, to rectify, and for dialogue avenues to be sought," explains to El País Marta Tejada, spokesperson for the group. The demand is not only to find another location: the organizers claim that Casa Árabe should remain precisely in the Aguirre Schools, where it has consolidated for almost two decades as a cultural and public diplomacy space.
Music, poetry, and dance to ask for Casa Árabe to stay
The protest will have a cultural format. The participation of singer Linda Alahmad, musician and lute player James Bitar, novelist Rima Bali and poets Maisoun Shukair, Ley Cobo, Francisco Luque, María Victoria Caro, and Hicham Amraoui is announced. Samir Elturky and Silvia Romero will also perform with darbuka and violin, and a collective interpretation of Palestinian dabke is planned.
The slogan of the call is "Casa Árabe stays." The promoters argue that a rehabilitation of the building should not necessarily mean the definitive departure of the institution and propose exploring formulas that allow the works to be carried out in phases or temporarily close certain areas. This is the position of the calling group, which admits not knowing in detail the accounts or technical reports of the property, but considers that a negotiation should be opened before breaking the link between Casa Árabe and the Aguirre Schools.
Why the City Council wants to reclaim the Aguirre Schools
The City Council holds a different position. The Consistory announced last June 29 that it would recover possession of the property to undertake its rehabilitation and subsequently give it a new municipal use. The Aguirre Schools were temporarily and free of charge ceded to Casa Árabe in 2008 and the decree regulating that cession contemplated as a cause for resolution any change in the composition of the consortium. According to the City Council, the exit of the Community of Madrid from Casa Árabe legally enabled the recovery of the building.
The municipal government adds that there are structural problems and conservation needs. Almeida has also held the previous management, led by Irene Lozano, responsible for the economic and material deterioration of the institution, accusations made by the mayor and rejected or questioned from the environment of Casa Árabe. The current delegate of Urbanism, Environment, and Mobility, Borja Carabante, insists that the recovery responds to the "breach" of the conditions of the cession and the need to carry out works.
The building also has significant heritage value. It was designed by Emilio Rodríguez Ayuso, inaugurated in 1886, and constitutes one of the most prominent examples of Madrid's neo-Mudéjar architecture. In 2025 it was declared Asset of Cultural Interest in the category of Monument and is part of the environment of the Landscape of Light recognized by UNESCO.
September 1 remains the deadline
The City Council currently maintains September 1 as the deadline. Carabante assured this week that the Consistory trusts that Casa Árabe will vacate the facilities within the established timeframe and announced that the municipal government is preparing an "alternative plan" in case the exit does not occur, although he did not publicly specify what it would consist of.
The pressure will continue that same Tuesday. The students of Casa Árabe have called for another concentration at 7:00 PM in the gardens of the Aguirre Schools, coinciding with the expiration of the deadline. Under the slogan "Casa Árabe is not to be touched," they demand more time and a negotiated solution and remind that the institution develops not only language courses but also cultural, academic activities, and those related to relations between Spain and the Arab world.
Foreign Affairs and Arab ambassadors also pressure Almeida
The conflict has transcended the municipal level. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, has asked the City Council to reconsider the decision and has defended Casa Árabe as an asset of Spanish public diplomacy. In July, he met with representatives of Arab countries and called for dialogue with the City Council to seek a solution.
The ambassadors of 17 Arab countries and a representative of the Arab League have also expressed their support for the institution, which they consider a relevant tool for relations between Spain and the Arab world. Casa Árabe is precisely celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and has offices in Madrid and Córdoba.
With the City Council determined to recover the property and the defenders of Casa Árabe demanding that the works do not imply a definitive eviction, the standoff now enters its final hours. The festival this Sunday in Sol will be the last major mobilization before the deadline, but the protest will continue on September 1 at the doors of the Aguirre Schools themselves.