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German Court Rules Ex-Catalan Leader Can Be Extradited To Spain

Former Catalan President Carles Puigdemont faces charges related to the independence referendum he organized.

German Court Rules Ex-Catalan Leader Can Be Extradited To Spain
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German court has decided that former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont can be extradited to Spain on one set of charges against him.

The court said he can be extradited on charges of misuse of public funds. But it said he can't be extradited on rebellion charges, which means Spanish authorities can't prosecute him on those charges.  

The charges are related to the independence referendum the then-Catalan president organized back in October, when he declared the region would separate from Spain. But Spain deemed the referendum illegal, dissolved Catalonia's parliament and took control of the region.

In March, Puigdemont was taken into custody on an international arrest warrant in Germany. 

The German court said in a statement that it won't extradite Puigdemont on the rebellion charges because they "fulfill neither the requirements of the crime of high treason nor the requirements of rioting under German law."  

After his extradition was announced, Puigdemont tweeted that he will "fight until the end, and we will win!"