Catalan officials now say 844 people were injured after police used rubber bullets and batons to stop a ballot for independence.

A banned referendum took place throughout the region today with violent clashes between police and voters.

The Catalan government claims the use of batons amounted to "unjustifiable violence" - which created a "terrible image of Spain".

But Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says the police acted admirably:

Journalist Tim Parfitt, who's based in the city, says the levels of violence were unprecedented: