Spain’s top court summons Catalan separatist leader

The investigating magistrate set tentative dates for the remote hearing between June 17 and 21

By Reuters
April 09, 2024
Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont is also facing prosecution over the 2017 referendum to break away from Madrid. — AFP/File
Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont is also facing prosecution over the 2017 referendum to break away from Madrid. — AFP/File 

MADRID: Spain’s Supreme Court has summoned Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont to testify remotely in June over his links to a group accused of breaching terrorism law over protests following the region’s failed 2017 bid for independence.

The investigating magistrate set tentative dates for the remote hearing between June 17 and 21 and issued a European Investigation Order to ascertain Puigdemont’s whereabouts and legal address, the court said in a statement on Monday. Puigdemont lives in self-imposed exile in Belgium.

The case concerns protests by a secretive Catalan group, Democratic Tsunami, which organised mass demonstrations including sit-ins in 2019 that caused cancellations of flights at Barcelona’s airport and blocked a highway to France.