The Mossos d'Esquadra have deployed two major operations against drug trafficking this Tuesday morning. The first focuses on Lleida and Seròs, in El Segrià, to arrest members of a criminal network involved in cannabis production and arms trafficking. The operation involves nearly 200 officers and includes raids on properties and industrial warehouses in both towns. So far, the Mossos have made eleven arrests, seized over 1,000 marijuana plants, and also found weapons and ammunition.

Italy will install metal detectors in schools to prevent students from bringing knives into the classroom after an 18-year-old boy killed a classmate with a kitchen knife at a high school in the northern region of La Spezia. The first pilot tests began on Friday at the entrance to the Einaudi Chiodo High School, where Youssef Abanoub, 18, was fatally stabbed two weeks ago by a classmate, Zouhair Atif, 19. Police officers with canine units and handheld metal detectors scanned the backpacks of all students outside the school gates. The violent death of Youssef Abanoub sparked a broad debate in Italy about youth violence and led the La Spezia police headquarters' provincial public order and security committee to decide to implement stricter security measures. The proposal was presented last week by Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara and confirmed this Thursday by the Interior Ministry through a circular sent to schools. "We need to restore parental authority and for everyone to understand that a parent's role cannot be delegated to a mobile phone," the minister declared in an interview, in which he warned of the rise in violence among young Italians. "Metal detectors in schools will be a useful tool; they are not repressive in any way, especially since those who don't carry knives have nothing to fear," Valditara asserted, responding to those who criticize a supposed "militarization" of Italian schools. Deterrent effect

According to the Italian government, the aim is to prevent the increasing use of bladed weapons by students through a system designed to have a deterrent effect. The measure can be adopted at the request of school principals, but law enforcement, with full "respect for school autonomy," may conduct surprise checks at schools "if there are specific concerns about the commission of crimes or ongoing judicial investigations in this area," the circular states. The document emphasizes that "the commission of serious acts of violence among young people, the discovery of weapons or other objects capable of causing harm in or around schools, as well as the presence of drug trafficking and consumption in areas frequented by schools, have highlighted the marginalization and illegality that permeate the social fabric of schools, requiring a coordinated institutional response." Increase in complaints

Despite warnings from institutions, Italy has one of the lowest rates of juvenile delinquency in Europe. However, according to a recent study by the NGO Save the Children, between 2019 and 2024, the number of minors reported for possession of weapons—from knives to brass knuckles or even stun guns—rose from 778 to 1,946. The first school to implement this measure was Marie Curie in Ponticelli, a troubled neighborhood on the outskirts of Naples. "Three or four times a year, police officers check students at the entrance to see if they are carrying concealed weapons or drugs," explains the principal, Valeria Pirone. The decision was made after a student stabbed another two years ago. After speaking with the students, Pirone understood the magnitude of a worrying phenomenon that, she says, "the school couldn't fight alone." In an interview in the newspaper The RepublicThe headmistress acknowledges that, at first, the students were afraid, but now they accept the checks calmly because they feel safer. "If this measure deters even one student from carrying a knife in their pocket, it will have been worth adopting. But it's sad to have to do it with a dead body on the floor," she concludes.

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The Spanish government approved it three months ago. the decree for the arms embargo on IsraelThe decree, which affects all defense and security equipment, including dual-use goods—those that can be used in both military and civilian contexts—prohibited the export and import of weapons originating from or destined for Israel. However, the decree included exceptions to this embargo: the prohibition could be lifted for reasons of "national interest." It is precisely this exception that the Spanish government has used this week to authorize the transfer of Israeli-made defense and dual-use equipment to Airbus, as has been reported. Eldiario.es and has checked the NOW.

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If you don't need Christmas-themed television this holiday season, and even appreciate a break from the sound of sleigh bells, HBO has a documentary that will radically transport you to another reality. And not a bucolic one. It's titled Thoughts and prayers. Oro how to survive an active shooter in AmericaIn Spanish it has been translated as I share your feelings. And what you'll see will leave you appalled. The documentary begins with a casting call where some salespeople enthusiastically present all sorts of gadgets designed for personal protection: armored shutters, tables and whiteboards that transform into shields, robots that attack strangers, alarm systems, devices to lock doors or immobilize people...

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While The wars in Gaza and Ukraine dragged the world to the historic peak of armed conflicts since World War IIMeanwhile, someone on the other side of the planet was rubbing their hands together: the arms manufacturers. In 2024, the top 100 arms-producing companies reached record revenues of $679 billion; an unprecedented figure that is almost 6% higher than the previous year, according to data published this Monday by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

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The decree of the Spanish government by the arms embargo on Israel arrives in Congress this Tuesday without the guaranteed support, although the Yeah Junts's proposal paves the way for a final green light. One of the reasons the plurinational bloc hasn't closed ranks on the initiative is its level of ambition. For parties like ERC, the BNG, and Podemos, it's low, and in fact, it was these parties that pressured the government to ban arms trade with Benjamin Netanyahu's government. After almost two years of offensive against the Palestinian population with thousands of deaths. Podemos has taken the harshest tone. With the favorable votes of all its partners and their abstention, the law would pass.

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When Margarita Robles took over the Ministry of Defense in 2018, there was no ammunition—in her words—but seven years later, with the left-wing coalition government of the PSOE and Sumar, military spending rose for the first time in 2024, reaching 1.4% of GDP. And it has reached 2% in 2025, as the minister argued this Wednesday at a colloquium of the Círculo de Economía (Economy Circle) in Barcelona. "Investment in defense is here to stay," she made clear in her opening remarks—which began in Catalan—and explained that the Spanish government is working on a kind of industrial belt so that all autonomous communities can develop business projects in this area. Catalonia, too.

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Political armed violence is historically inherent to the United States and will only approach zero the day Americans relinquish the right to bear arms. And we will never see this, because the sanctification of the Second Amendment, the multi-billion dollar rifle business, and the self-serving use of the Bible (especially the Old Testament) make millions of Americans believe that bearing arms is a divine right that is theirs as citizens of an exceptional nation. Guns equal freedom, all the Republican candidates say, the Democratic candidates swallow it, and pro-Trump influencer Charlie Kirk defended it. murder Wednesday, who had once claimed that a few gun deaths a year was a price worth paying to protect freedoms. A martyr to the cause of freedom, then.

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A Glock 19, a semi-automatic pistol usually carried by police forces; a Beretta 92, a very similar handgun; and a Kalashnikov, the legendary Soviet assault rifle. In addition to ammunition, balaclavas and silencers. It was Sunday, July 27, and two officers of the Guardia Urbana saw a car driving erratically. They tried to stop it, and the car tried to flee. The chase descended Vallcarca Avenue in Barcelona and ended on República Argentina Street, when the officers managed to stop the car. In the trunk, they found the arsenal. It was driven by a man of Turkish origin who was eventually arrested, but after a few days he was back on the streets, accused of a weapons offense.

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In a context of military escalation and in a world that hasn't seen so many armed conflicts since World War II, how can we talk about peace and war in schools? Toni Álvarez, a special education teacher and member of Demilitarize Education and CGT Ensenyament, proposes listening, dialogue, and denunciation for an education for peace and global justice, but also advocates addressing conflict. Although more and more time is being given to students' small, personal conflicts, he believes we focus on relationships with others and the question is how this affects the community, thus recovering the concept of security. "We understand security through weapons, through armies, and, in the end, what gives us security is having a roof over our heads, having food to eat, being surrounded by those we love, being able to relate harmoniously, and resolving conflicts through listening and dialogue," says Álvarez.

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Some objects and substances are prohibited in prison, but this doesn't mean they're not allowed in. Prison officials make hundreds of seizures each year when they discover, for example, an inmate with a cell phone, drugs, or some type of weapon. Over the past seven years, drug seizures have increased by 76%, according to data obtained by ARA through a transparency request, which the Department of Justice has declined to comment on. Seizures of dangerous objects have also nearly doubled.

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Typically, in a police investigation, drugs end up leading to weapons. That is, first a marijuana plantation or a shipment of hashish is usually detected, and then the police end up discovering that the traffickers are armed, not so much to attack the police, which is very rare, but to defend themselves against robberies (known as narco-assaults or drug robberies). rollovers) that they suffer at the hands of other criminal groups. An investigation by the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) has changed this order of factors and has become one of the first operations by the Catalan police against arms trafficking in Catalonia. As sources within the force admit: the weapons ended up leading to the drugs.

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Police crackdown on marijuana trafficking. The Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) deployed more than 400 officers at five o'clock this Tuesday morning in two operations against the drug traffickers. Organized crime established in Catalonia and linked to drug trafficking and weapons. The dual operation has reached numerous locations across Catalonia (around twenty different towns) and, according to sources within the force consulted by ARA, 29 arrests have been made. The Civil Guard has also launched an operation against drug trafficking in Barcelona and Girona, with 19 searches and up to 22 arrests. In total, this morning, up to 51 arrests have been made between the two police forces for drug trafficking.

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The day after calling for Israel's expulsion from Eurovision, the same day that Spain urged the EU to review its association agreement With the country led by Benjamin Netanyahu, and with a rally outside Congress, Pedro Sánchez had no choice but to vote in favor of a total arms embargo on Israel. Netanyahu began his parliamentary journey this Tuesday thanks to the votes of the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) and also Junts (Junts). "Do not use this law as a political weapon or as an ideological coven," he warned. However, Junta deputy Isidre Gavín only opposed it and accused the promoters of taking it into consideration, and now the amendment process is opening. Often, procedures are shelved until the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) decides to unblock them. In fact, on the same day that this initiative was being voted on in Congress, Defense Minister Margarita Robles already cooled off the request for hourly purchases from Israel. "If these are products that are absolutely essential for the security of our military, it remains to be seen," she noted in statements to the press at the entrance of the EU Defense Council this Tuesday in Brussels, reports. Gerard Fageda.

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European rearmament, fueled by the threat from Russia and pressure from Donald Trump, is increasingly diverting public funds from Europe. And Spain is no exception. Pedro Sánchez's government has modified the Ministry of Defense budget in the extended budget, increasing it by €10.471 billion to €33.123 billion. However, according to calculations by the Delàs Center for Peace Studies, the real figure for Spanish military spending will rise by €40.457 billion, or 2.48% of the gross domestic product, almost half a percentage point above what the US president is demanding from NATO partners. According to researchers, this increase in spending, which is of historic proportions, is being done in a "camouflaged" manner and will translate into cuts in social spending.

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In the end, Spain will not buy the 15 million bullets from Israel. This is what President Sánchez has decided., who thus disavows his Interior Minister, Marlaska, after pressure from Sumar and Podemos. Vice President Díaz demanded a reversal, arguing that the purchase of ammunition constituted a "flagrant violation of international law and government agreements" because "we are witnessing a genuine genocide in Gaza."

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In the midst of the debate on increased defense spending and just the day before Pedro Sánchez's appearance in Congress, the Lower House's Defense Committee warmed up with an analysis of military equipment exports from Spanish companies. According to a report prepared by the State Secretariat for Trade, Spain exported defense equipment worth €1.976 billion in the first half of 2024. This is 13% more than the same period last year, according to the head of this secretariat, Amparo López Senovilla, in an appearance on Tuesday. The main recipients were European Union (EU) countries with 61% of total exports (€1.212 billion), and the best-selling product was aircraft (€1.339 billion, almost 70% of the total).

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The events that have happened in the last two decades of the last century and the first decades of this one, and especially in recent months, have convinced me that we are entering a new era in our history. I hope it will be one of progress, and that it will allow us, or in some cases, force us, to change important aspects of our personal lives and social relations, both locally and globally. The difficulties, misunderstandings, and conflicts we are now experiencing, along with the uncertainties about the future, affect our peace of mind, make our coexistence difficult, and destroy trust in many politicians. If we do not collectively adapt to the reality of the new era, there will be no progress, and the current difficulties will only grow.

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We argued, before the brand-new change in the world order, that nuclear weapons precisely rendered thrift rearmament, that is, junk (tanks, pistols, and machine guns), completely useless. That the army had little point if a button solved everything and, in practice, fostered peace, out of fear of total destruction.

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It might seem that Pedro Sánchez has resolved the historic dilemma of guns or butter, because he has promised his government partner Yolanda Díaz that defence spending can be increased without reducing social spending. We are waiting for him to explain how he intends to do it, just as we are waiting for the EU to explain how it intends to finance the eight hundred billion euros of the defence plan presented by Ursula von der Leyen.

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