A 39-year-old man was arrested on Saturday, March 21, for throwing an incendiary device at participants in the March for Life in Lisbon, Portugal, in front of the country’s parliament building.
According to police, at the time of the attack “there were approximately 500 participants in the demonstration,” including families with young children and infants. The man arrived at the scene and “threw an improvised incendiary device – a ‘Molotov cocktail’ containing gasoline – in the direction of those present; the device hit the ground, but failed to ignite, potentially averting more serious consequences.”
The suspect was caught at the scene and arrested. Police said other “individuals who were allegedly part of a group with anarchist leanings” fled, but three members were later identified.
Officers also seized the device, which contained “a glass bottle containing flammable liquid and textile material – as well as other items of evidential value.”
Commenting on the case, Portugal’s Minister of Internal Administration Luis Neves said on social media: “We do not tolerate any form of violent extremism, and we will continue to act firmly to prevent and combat it while protecting democratic values.”
terrorist act
The Portuguese Federation for Life, which organized the March for Life, issued a statement on 23 March classifying Saturday’s incident as a “terrorist attack”.
Referring to the incident, the federation stressed that although the incendiary device did not burn, “the fuel used in the device” fell on “several people, including two children”.
“If the ignition had not failed, we would be talking about the deaths of children and infants today,” the federation said. However, the group stressed that “the failure of the attack cannot obscure the fact that a political organization planned and tried to carry out an attack using an inciting tool against a public event full of families, youth and children.”
The Portuguese Federation for Life urged that “this attack be treated by the authorities as a terrorist act.” The group also requested that if any link is established between the attackers and any political organization, that organization “should be declared a terrorist organization, as provided in the anti-terrorism law.”
Furthermore, the federation called on “all those who, especially in the exercise of public office, have in recent years adopted a tone of hatred against the pro-life movement, accusing us of countless evils, to search their conscience and understand the consequences of their rhetoric.”
The federation announced that it would request a meeting with the Minister of Internal Administration and the Prosecutor General of the Republic to address the incident and, “at the appropriate time,” it would “join the upcoming judicial proceedings as an amicus curiae (friend of the court).”
seriously unacceptable incident
The Patriarch of Lisbon, Rui Manuel Sousa Valerio, condemned the attack against the March for Life.
“Such incidents are seriously unacceptable,” Sousa Valerio said. He stressed that “violence is never the way,” that it “harms human dignity and does not serve the truth.”
He added, “And it becomes even more painful when it threatens the most vulnerable, especially children, who should always be symbols of hope and never face fear.”
The Vice Chancellor expressed his closeness to “all those participating in this initiative, and especially those families and children who may have felt fear and insecurity.”
He said, “The Church is close to everyone; it accompanies and prays for each person. No incident of violence can erase the good work done, the witness given and the hope sown.”
march for life
Marches for Life took place in 12 Portuguese cities on Saturday. In addition to Lisbon, protesters also took to the streets against abortion and euthanasia in Aveiro, Beja, Braga, Bragança, Coimbra, Faro, Guarda, Lamego, Porto, Setúbal and Viseu.
This year, the March for Life adopted the theme “Pro-life people take to the streets” and aimed to be a march “for the dignity of all human beings, for life from the moment of conception to natural death, and for families”.
Abortion was legalized in Portugal following a national referendum in 2007.
Pope Leo XIV sent a message to participants of the March for Life, stating that “According to divine design, the family is the natural guardian of life” and, therefore, it is essential to ensure that “the conditions necessary to welcome newborn life are not lacking and to care with renewed commitment for that which is in decline (the sick or the elderly).”
“Let public resources sustain Portuguese families, especially those who are about to become mothers, and promote the implementation of authentic policies of solidarity that bring citizens closer to the most needy, the marginalised, the lonely and migrants in whom the face of Christ shines,” the Pope said.
Regarding the culture of death, Leo said that “Mere declarations of good intentions, and at worst, fallacious forms of compassion such as euthanasia and ultimately abortion, do not help the development of our society.”
In his view, “thoughts and words that inspire actions and gestures that enhance human dignity are indispensable, a goal to which friendship with Christ, developed through the prayerful recitation of the Gospel within the family, contributes greatly.”
The Pope encouraged the newlyweds to “welcome God’s love and allow it to bear fruit, reflecting the joy of marriage and parenthood.”
this story was first published By ACI Digital, the Portuguese-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
