Today in Spain: A roundup of the latest news on Friday

Spain's PM and royals welcome Pope Leo

Spain's left-wing Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Thursday said he hoped newly elected Pope Leo XIV would "contribute to strengthening dialogue and the defence of human rights".

"May his pontificate contribute to strengthening dialogue and the defence of human rights in a world that needs hope and unity," Sánchez wrote on X.

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain also congratulated the newly chosen Pope.

"His call for peace inspires us, encourages us, and reflects the deep desire and sentiment of the Spanish people," the royal palace said on X.

Population in Spain rises to 49.1 million

The population of Spain increased by 75,865 people during the first quarter of 2025, reaching 49,153,849 inhabitants, the highest figure on record.

This was due to an increase in the number of foreigners in Spain, while native born Spaniards continue to decrease.

According to population stats published by Spain’s national statistics body (INE) this week, the number of foreigners increased by 95,363 during the quarter of the year, to 6,947,711, while the population of Spanish nationals decreased by 19,498.

Donkey escapes from Seville's Feria de Abril and causes chaos on motorway

On Wednesday a donkey escaped from the famous Seville April Fair and caused chaos when it managed to get onto the A-49 motorway and brought traffic to a standstill, causing miles of traffic jams.

The incident took place at around 8.40 a.m. at the exit of the capital in the direction of Huelva, on the uphill slope towards Castilleja de la Cuesta, according to reporting from El Correo.

Blackout in the Canaries

Following the nationwide blackout of last week, a smaller power outage on Thursday morning left 19,526 people in the Canary island of La Palma without electricity due to a fault at an electrical substation. The power cut lasted between half an hour and just over an hour and a half, depending on location.

The power cut was reportedly caused by a fault at the Los Guinchos substation, which led to a mismatch between energy supply and demand, resulting in a disconnection to safeguard the generating equipment, according to the Director General of Energy for the Canary Islands government, Alberto Hernández.

He also stated that 30 minutes after the failure, which occurred at 9.47 a.m. Canary Islands time, 40 percent of the supply had already been restored, with a gradual increase until full recovery at 11.34 a.m.

Alcampo to close 25 supermarkets and lay off 710 staff

The supermarket chain Alcampo will lay off up to 710 employees following the closure of 25 of its shops in Spain, the company informed unions on Thursday.

The company has sent a list of the supermarkets and hypermarkets with staff affected by the collective redundancies. State broadcaster RTVE reports that this will include more than a hundred distributed across Madrid, La Rioja, Cantabria, Navarra, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y León, Galicia, Aragón, Asturias and the Basque Country, but has not specified which shops will be closed.

The hypermarkets affected are located in Alcorcón, La Vega, Majadahonda, Castellón, Albacete, Sanlúcar, Jerez and Sevilla Este.

With extra reporting from AFP.