THE SPANISH PRISONER: Huge Spain unity rally in Barcelona.

At least 350,000 people gathered in Barcelona, capital of Catalonia, for a rally against independence from Spain.

They waved Spanish and Catalan flags and carried banners saying “Together we are stronger” and “Catalonia is Spain”.

It was the largest such rally in Catalonia amid the furore over last week’s disputed independence referendum.

Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy has warned he would not rule out anything “within the law” to halt Catalan secession.

Given how lopsided the vote was in favor of independence, I wonder whether the local pro-Madrid Catalonians were energized to show up, or if there might have been an effort to bus them in from other regions. Doing so would certainly be “within the law,” and actually a common practice in democratically run countries.