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

Spain's new prostitution law to zero in on digital pimps

Digital pimping is one of the areas Spain’s Ministry of Equality is working on as part of the draft bill to abolish prostitution, which it plans to submit to the Council of Ministers next September.

According to El País, the department headed by Minister Ana Redondo will punish any act on the internet in which someone benefits financially from the prostitution of another person.

“I’m committed to ensuring that this draft law is on the table of the Spanish Cabinet at the start of the political year,” Redondo told journalists.

So-called e-pimps are becoming increasingly common according to reports, harnessing sites such as OnlyFans to become ‘managers’ of unassuming models which they then exploit.

More than half of promised Valencia flood aid not paid as wildfire help starts

The Spanish government on Tuesday declared territories across 16 Spanish regions to be disaster zones after being ravaged by wildfires, thus activating financial help with public funds for reconstruction and recovery.

However, ten months after the devastating DANA floods that hit the province of Valencia in particular, 62 percent of the promised financial aid has not yet been delivered to those affected.

According to government data, of the 16.6 billion allocated, Madrid has only paid €6.2 billion.

High-speed trains between Madrid and Barcelona grind to a halt due to fire

The AVE high-speed route between Spain’s two biggest cities was cancelled on Wednesday afternoon due to a wildfire close to the tracks in the province of Guadalajara.

Spain’s rail network has experienced countless issues in recent months, from copper thieves interrupting services to power cuts and other technical problems.

Authorities are trying to extinguish the last 15 fires which have caused the greatest amount of land destruction in the country in recent times.

The route between Barcelona and Madrid was re-established on Wednesday evening.

Barcelona to name Gaza its 11th district

Barcelona City Council will name Gaza and the Palestinian cities as the Catalan city's new 11th district with the aim of extending its "commitment" to the conflict and strengthening the collaborative ties with the region.

Barcelona Mayor Jaume Collboni is thus reviving the initiative carried out by former Socialist mayor Pasqual Maragall, who in 1995, in the midst of the Balkan War, declared Sarajevo the city's eleventh district, the council recalled in a statement on Tuesday.

The mayor's goal is to have a "group of municipal representatives" deployed in Palestinian cities before the end of the year, who will collaborate regularly on various urban planning, health, and education projects.