Spanish judge issues arrest warrant for ousted Catalan leader

MADRID - 3 November 2017: A Spanish judge has issued an arrest warrant for ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont and four of his former councillors, all currently in Belgium, the High Court said in a statement on Friday.

Puigdemont left for Belgium after Catalonia's regional government was sacked by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy hours after the Catalan parliament made a unilateral declaration of independence on Friday.

Puigdemont and his associates faces charges of rebellion, sedition, misuse of public funds and breach of trust. The judge rejected the former Catalan leader's request to testify via videoconference from Belgium.