A court now has to decide whether to bring charges.Madrid took control of the wealthy semi-autonomous region after Friday's independence declaration by Catalan lawmakers, and called for a snap election on December 21 to replace the parliament in a drastic bid to stop the secessionist drive. He left again shortly afterwards to attend a party meeting. "But Sabria said that they would not give up, and a separatist source described the situation as the "beginning of a psychological war" with Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's government. 'Viva Espana'With its own language and distinct culture, Catalonia accounts for a fifth of the eurozone country's economy and had a high degree of autonomy over key sectors such as education, healthcare and the police.After Friday's declaration of independence, Catalan lawmakers hugged and sang the Catalan anthem. Organizers said 1.3 million turned out and the central government's representative in Catalonia put the figure at one million.

Source: Egypt Today October 30, 2017 18:00 UTC