Ousted Catalan President Carles Puigdemont is calling for avoiding violence and says dialogue is a priority during his first address on Belgian soil. (Olivier Matthys/Associated Press)TIELT, Belgium — Ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont will not return to Spain for questioning this week by a National Court judge investigating him for possible rebellion charges, his Belgian lawyer said Wednesday, suggesting that he could be questioned in Belgium instead. The fired Catalan regional government leader flew to Brussels after the Spanish government used special constitutional powers to take control of Catalan affairs Saturday and fired his government. Puigdemont and his 13 former Catalan Cabinet members have been summoned for questioning in Madrid on Thursday and Friday. Six former Catalan parliament members are also to appear Thursday and Friday before the Supreme Court in Madrid in a parallel probe over possible rebellion.

Source: Washington Post November 01, 2017 09:29 UTC