Thousands march in Madrid after death of evicted pensioner Maricarmen

Rally to remember woman, 87, whose rent battle with investment firm triggered nationwide protests over housing crisis

About 20,000 people took part in a march through the centre of Madrid on Thursday evening in memory of Maria del Carmen Abascal, the 87-year-old woman whose eviction from her flat in the capital a fortnight before her death triggered mass protests over Spain's housing crisis.

The pensioner, whose flat had been bought by an investment firm that sought to increase her rent by 230%, had become the public face of the crisis before her death in hospital on Wednesday night.