Barcelona under fire. The danger of calls to action via TikTok, Telegram, and WhatsApp.

BARCELONA: 128 PEOPLE ARRESTED FOLLOWING RIOTS ORGANIZED THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA. A WARNING ABOUT THE DIGITAL DANGERS FACING YOUNG PEOPLE BARCELONA, GENEVA, BUENOS AIRES — OCTOBER 25, 2026 BARCELONA, SPAIN. Serious disturbances in Barcelona have brought renewed scrutiny to the role of social media in mobilizing young people toward violent behavior. The call to gather circulated on TikTok and continued through Telegram and WhatsApp groups, according to information provided to the World Bullying Without Borders Organization by sources at social media companies. The incidents resulted in 128 arrests, 72 of them involving minors. Shops were damaged and fires were reported. The police investigation seeks to establish how the gathering was organized and who was behind it. The case raises an urgent question: to what extent can social media facilitate the transformation of an online call to action into violence on the streets? Digital platforms allow messages to spread rapidly and connect people who may not know one another. A call to gather can reach large numbers of young people, moving interactions from a public social network into private messaging groups. In those spaces, messages can take on a different dimension: sharing instructions, coordinating movements and reinforcing pressure to participate. The problem
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