The trial for 12 defendants, including three who are on bail, will begin Feb. 12 at the Supreme Court in Madrid, a Spanish court official told The Associated Press. Supporters gathered early Friday at the gates of three different prisons in Catalonia, where convoys of regional police emerged ferrying the defendants. The “trial of the century,” as it’s been labeled by the Spanish media, has taken on a high political significance. The charges stem from the autumn of 2017, when Catalan separatists pushed ahead with a banned independence referendum and a violent police crackdown attempted to stop it. Separatist Catalan lawmakers declared victory and made a unilateral independence declaration 26 days later, but received no international recognition.

Source: Washington Post February 01, 2019 08:00 UTC