Photos: Mock coup d’état turns Spanish town white

Keeping alive a 200-year-old traditional festival, participants known as Els Enfarinats (those covered in flour) dressed up in military clothes this Friday and staged a mock coup d'etat in the southeastern Spanish town of Ibi as they battled residents using flour, eggs and firecrackers outside the town hall as part of the celebrations of the Day of the Innocents.

Updated on: Dec 30, 2018 5:00 PM IST

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Revellers dressed in mock military garb take part in the “Els Enfarinats” battle in the southeastern Spanish town of Ibi on December 28, 2018. The festival is a part of the town’s Day of the Holy Innocents celebrations which, remember the biblical story of King Herod’s orders to execute male babies in Bethlehem in an attempt to kill baby Jesus. (Jaime Reina / AFP)

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The name Els Enfarinats derives from the Valencian word for “breading”, roughly translating to “the breaded ones” or “the floured ones”. (Jaime Reina / AFP)

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The festival sees a group don military clothing and stage a coup, declaring new rules on the small town and collecting fines from residents who fall foul of them. (Alberto Saiz / AP)

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While the Els Enfarinats run amok beginning their siege early morning, the Casats i Fadrins, accompanied by a band of street musicians called the Rondalla, tour the city in this day-long event. (Jaime reina / AFP)

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The siege is followed by a Race for Mayor where the leader of the invaders is decided as part of the town’s new order. (Jaime Reina / AFP)

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In the Church Square it is decreed that those who do not pay the fine will go to jail. At midday, a collection takes place through the streets of Ibi, terminating in the Sant Joaquim Sanctuary. The collected money is donated to charity. (Jaime Reina / AFP)

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Till five in the afternoon, the Els Enfarinats exercise their authority over this small town, aided by copious amounts of fireworks, flour bombs and eggs. (Jaime Reina / AFP)

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As the clock strikes five, Ibi skips into the present, the takeover complete and peace restored. The brief rule of the Els Enfarinats gives way to traditional dances and the town is spared a cakey mess for another year. (Jaime Reina / AFP)