THE Communist Party of Spain called for international solidarity yesterday after rapper Pablo Hasel was imprisoned for lyrics insulting the country’s royal family.

Mr Hasel was sentenced to nine months in jail for glorifying terrorism and slandering the crown and state institutions in tweets and lyrics that attacked the monarchy and police, who he accused of torturing and killing demonstrators and migrants.

Police raided the University of Lleida, where he had barricaded himself in with supporters. He was taken away to nearby Ponent prison, shouting: “They will never silence us — death to the fascist state.”

The Communist Party of Spain warned that the law was “a mere instrument of the ruling class to preserve its power over the dominated classes.” It urged people worldwide to raise their voices against Mr Hasel’s jailing.

Film director Pedro Almodovar and Hollywood actor Javier Bardem are among more than 200 artists who have signed a petition against the sentence, which a court upheld on Monday. Amnesty International also condemned the verdict.

Spain is currently reviewing its laws on so-called “crimes of expression.”