Military manoeuvres in the bay of Pollensa.

Military manoeuvres in the bay of Pollensa. | Miquel A. Cañellas

Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterPollensa24/11/2016 00:00
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The Alternativa per Pollença party has called for the Balearics to be declared a demilitarised area. This is in response to military manoeuvres being carried out as part of Eagle Eye air defence operation, which the party opposes.

According to the Alternativa, armed forces are doing as they please in Pollensa and putting land and people at risk. Pollensa should be, the party argues, a place of peace and tranquility where people can relax and enjoy the scenery and the beaches.

It criticises the cost and the ecological damage because of such a sizable military presence. The Alternativa also attacks the "connivance and silence of the town hall, which has said nothing about the manoeuvres". It demands that the island's authorities do not permit any military manoeuvre in Majorca, which would be in line with a decision of the Catalonian parliament. In July, it asked the government to ban manoeuvres in areas that are not specifically for military purposes.

The operation, which is a surveillance and security test for the defence of the Balearics, has involved F-18 fighters, the anti-aircraft defence unit and the Álvaro de Bazán frigate. A total of 425 soldiers have been taking part.