Spain withdraws its international order for arrest and extradition against Carles Puigdemont

The former Catalan regional president Carles Puigdemont and five other separatist leaders were rescued on Thursday from being extradited to Spain after the investigating judge withdrawing the international arrest warrants that weighed against him

The decision, set out in a brief by the Spanish Judge Pablo Llarena implies that the six, residents of ] Germany Belgium United Kingdom and Switzerland may move abroad and not expose to be delivered.

] Spain notwithstanding, the respective orders remain in force, so if they come back they would be detained.

The judge of Supreme Court rendered the decision after a court in Germany where Puigdemont recently dismissed the possibility of extraditing him by the serious charge of rebellion, punishable by 25 years in prison.

Avui is one day to recover amb més force that May the llibertat dels presos i OEDE is a demonstration of the immense immensity of the judicial cause. Revoking the prevention will be the demonstration that the Spanish justice began to act as a European

– Carles Puigdemont (@KRLS) July 19, 2018

Puigdemont received the congratulations of his successor in power and close friend, Quim Torra who spoke of a "new political and judicial victory".

"We are very satisfied," said to AFP Gonzalo Boye, one of Puigdemont's lawyers

"What makes no sense, it's that some facts are not a crime in the rest of Europe and yes they are in Spain, "he continued speaking of the charge of rebellion.

Puigdemont was arrested on March 25. Llarena, returning by car from a visit to Finland, but less than two weeks later, the local justice ordered his release on bail.

His intention now is to be able to return to Belgium. It was installed in late October, after being sacked by his entire government by the Spanish central executive, a few hours after the Catalan Parliament unilaterally declared its independence.

NINE CATALANS IN PRISON PRISON
With the decision the international arrest warrants issued against Puigdemont and four former members of his government are lifted: Toni Comín Lluís Puig and Meritxell Serret settled in in Belgium and Clara Ponsatí residing in Scotland.

The fifth is Marta Rovira, party leader Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC ), who would be in Switzerland

All are among the 25 figures of Catalan separatism prosecuted for their participation in the unsuccessful attempt unilateral secession of Catalonia last year.

As part of this case, 13 are accused of rebellion and nine are currently in pre-trial detention, among whom former Catalan Vice President Oriol Junqueras, the former head of the Interior Joaquim Forn and the x president of the regional parliament Carme Forcadell

Of the six concerned by Judge Llarena's decision on Thursday, four are accused of rebellion: Puigdemont, Comín, Ponsatí and Rovira. Lluís Puig and Meritxell Serret are only accused of disobedience and embezzlement.

In December, Llarena had already withdrawn international arrest warrants for the first time, to reactivate them at the end of March. A somewhat tortuous action and conditioned by the rulings of other countries' justice, that independence has not stopped badping.

"New international mockery of Llarena and Spanish justice, everyone knows that there is no rebellion". an ERC chief, Sergi Sabrià

"We welcome this news, but at the moment we have no official confirmation from Spain," said the lawyer from Ponsatí in the United Kingdom, Aamer Anwar, on Twitter

. "The national arrest warrant remains in effect, which means that Clara Ponsatí remains in exile," he added.

ae