BRUSSELS – The European Parliament is voting Monday on whether to lift the immunity of the former president of Spain’s Catalonia region, Carles Puigdemont, and two of his associates, a move which could pave the way for their extradition.
Puigdemont and a number of his colleagues fled to Belgium in October 2017, fearing arrest over the holding of an independence referendum that the Spanish government said was illegal.
In 2019, he, former Catalan health minister Toni Comin and former regional education minister Clara Ponsati won seats in the European Parliament and were afforded protection in their positions as members of the EU assembly.