Hunger Strike
Two more jailed Catalan separatist leaders awaiting trial for their role in the region’s failed bid to secede from Spain joined a hunger strike started two days ago by two of their companions to protest against their treatment by Spanish courts.
Two of the leaders in custody, Josep Rull and Joaquim Forn, released a statement saying they would join the hunger strike started on Saturday by Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Turull.
“We also voluntarily renounce food intake as of 8:00 p.m. on Monday,” the men said in a statement.
They said they were fasting to support Sanchez and Turull’s protest against the failure of Spanish courts to process numerous appeals in relation to their cases.
Nuclear Protest
SPANISH activists have demanded the UK government stop docking nuclear submarines in Gibraltar.
Ecologistas en Accion blasted the British Navy following the arrival of the HMS Astute into the overseas territory at the weekend.
The green group called the submarine a ‘floating bomb’ and said it put the whole of Andalucia at risk from a nuclear fall out.
The group, which campaigns on environmental issues, said it was time for Gibraltar to be ‘free from nuclear-powered vessels once and for all’.
Hashish Seizure
The Guardia Civil has seized 1,335 kilograms of hashish, with a street value of two million Euro hidden among oranges that were being shipped in a truck near Salamanca).
The operation took place at dawn last week as part of the usual check’s carried out against drug trafficking.
The cargo’s origin and specific destination are unknown, although according to a spokesman it may have been from Morocco and loaded in southern Spain. The final destination was likely to be the United Kingdom.
Madrid Traffic.
Last Friday, Madrid’s new vehicle emissions controls went into effect, resulting in a drop in traffic by nearly 32 percent in some parts of the city. The new rules impose strict restrictions on which vehicles can enter an area of just under two square miles in the city’s downtown.
The plan, known as Madrid Central, is an attempt to lower the city’s nitrogen dioxide levels, which have exceeded European limits since 2010 and are thought to cause around 3,000 premature deaths per year, according to one study.