Former Catalan Prime Minister Carles Puigdemont has been arrested in Sardinia. His lawyer, Gonzalo Bui, confirmed this Thursday night on Twitter. The reason is an international arrest warrant issued by the Spanish Supreme Court against Catalan separatists already living in Belgium, La Vanguardia newspaper reported, citing information from the court in Madrid. Spain accuses him, among other things, of rebellion.
SN / APA (AFP) / KENZO TRIBOUILLARD
Puigdemont was captured in Sardinia
Puigdemont traveled to Sardinia to attend a meeting of independent Sardinian local politicians on Friday. It is now up to the Italian judiciary whether Puigdemont should be released or extradited to Spain. Puigdemont’s Belgian lawyer Simon Beckert also confirmed in Brussels that the Italian police had arrested Puigdemont in Sardinia. It was not initially possible to confirm the arrest of the Italian authorities.
As a member of the European Union Parliament, Puigdemont has immunity. However, this is controversial after it was abolished by the European Parliament. The final decision of the European Union Court in Luxembourg was pending.
Puigdemont fled abroad after the banned referendum on independence in Catalonia in October 2017. Since then, he has been persecuted by the Spanish judiciary. In 2018, he had already been arrested in Germany. However, the criminals were not extradited to Spain.
Accessed September 24, 2021 at 3:29 am at https://www.sn.at/politik/weltpolitik/katalane-carles-puigdemont-auf-sardinien-festhaben-109913671
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