Protest Erupts in Barcelona After Catalan Leader Puigdemont Detained in Italy

Supporters of Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont rallied at the Italian Consulate in Barcelona, Spain, on September 24, in protest against the separatist leader’s detention in Sardinia on Thursday.

Footage posted by Spanish Senator Robert Masih Nahar shows crowds of protesters chanting and waving Catalan flags.

Puigdemont’s lawyer, Gonzalo Boye said the separatist leader was detained upon arrival on the Italian island, where he was due to attend an event as a member of the European Parliament. According to Boye, he was detained Thursday under a 2019 arrest warrant, which had been suspended.

Puigdemont is wanted in Spain for his role in a 2017 referendum on Catalan independence, which was ruled unconstitutional. Credit: Robert Masih Nahar via Storyful