The trouble started when police tried to clear the protesters from a main square in Barcelona so sanitation workers could clean it up before possible celebrations after a soccer match Saturday night.

Many of the protesters, who are angry about high unemployment, anti-austerity measures and politicians' handling of the economy, refused to move. Television images showed officers beating the demonstrators and dragging them on the ground. Some wound up with bloodied hands and heads, or broken limbs.

Catalonia regional Interior Ministry spokesman Felip Puig said 84 protesters and 37 police were injured. Officers were seen hauling people away, but Puig did not say how many had been arrested and he didn't say how serious the injuries were. He did say one protester had a broken arm.

The protesters were allowed to return to the plaza, which has been occupied by protesters for nearly two weeks, after it was cleaned. Protesters have been camped out there for nearly two weeks. Puig justified the authorities' action by saying the plaza had to be cleaned because soccer fans will gather there Saturday night after the Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United in London.

Scuffles also broke out between authorities and protesters in the city of Lleida, west of Barcelona. Two people were arrested, according to the Europa Press news agency. Source