Belgian judge defers ruling on warrant forex-Catalan leader

BRUSSELS: A Belgian judge made no ruling on Friday on a European arrest warrant issued by Spain for ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, his lawyer said after a court hearing in Brussels.
The Belgian prosecutor demanded the warrant to be exercised, but the case for Puigdemont’s defence will be made at a hearing early next month. “We will make our case on December 4. The prosecutor has asked for the extradition warrant to be exercised. Nothing has been decided today,” Paul Bekaert told reporters outside the main Brussels court.
The prosecutor had determined that according to Belgian law Puigdemont and four of his former ministers who travelled with him to Brussels were charged with conspiracy by public officials, Bekaert added. Under the Spanish warrant, all five faced charges of rebellion and sedition.
They had left Spain after Puigdemont’s regional government was sacked by Madrid for unilaterally declaring Catalonia independent following a referendum on secession that court authorities in Madrid had ruled was illegal.